Project Update

The latest project was a blanket with a new direction.

One of my nieces got married last weekend, and I decided to make a blanket for the couple as a wedding gift.

I had to be very careful to make sure that it was a "grown-up" gift and not a baby gift, so I was careful with the colors that I chose.  The bride loves darker blues (the wedding colors were navy and silver/grey) and the groom loves purples.  I chose three different shades of darker blues and three different shades of purples and used a silvery grey for an intermediate color.

I decided to use the definition of love found in I Corinthians 13 and a couple of other places.  Instead of a blessing blanket or an ABC verses blanket, this would be a love blanket.

It starts in the middle along the top and goes back and forth along the top and down each side.

 

Going along the bottom, I put the names and wedding date in the center.  This time I capitalized her name with his color, and his name with her color (does that make a lick of sense to anyone other than me??)

 

Then going out from the center I put Ben's verses on his side 

and Cara's verses on her side.  

Did you ever think about the fact that these verses are commands to both husbands and wives?  When God tells a man to love his wife, He is telling the wife to be loveable (ouch!)  When He tells a wife to honor her husband, He is telling a man to be honorable!  So that's why I did those other two squares.

For the two bottom corners I chose "cornerstone" love verses to think about.

Finally I backed it a soft, light-weight, cotton flannel and this time instead of backing it to the edge and sewing a border, I fringed it (I was pretty excited about doing that).  I used a purple to try and tie all the different colors (including the ones in the LOVE frame) together.

Here's the final product:

And here is the happy Bride's happy Nana holding it up

Everyone should have a Nana this wonderful!

Walkabout Wednesday: Totals and Progress

I have done better about not only wearing my pedometer but actually remembering to record the results.  Yay for me!

February's final total was 93.8 miles.  As I said before, that is rather pathetic for a month of walking.

March was better with a total of 119.38, bringing the overall total to 2211.69.  That makes me happy!

I have said my farewells to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam, left the Colorado River Basin and headed out through the desert.

At this point I am less focused on sight-seeing and more focused on making more progress toward New Zealand.  The detour up through the Grand Canyon, Lake Mead, and the Dam was huge.  I didn't realize how huge until I zoomed out on the map and pinpointed where I had been, where I went and where I am now.  I'm glad I made that detour, though.

I passed by Vegas (didn't see the point of stopping there; not my cup of tea) and turned south and west.  I walked through a portion of Joshua Tree National Park (more about that in a later post).  I'm now just east of the Salton Sea.  I plan to swing by The Slabs before turning more west and heading toward the ocean.  I think I'll just head west from here, instead of trying to "see" LA.  It's interesting with some interesting sights, I'm sure, but I think the beaches (which are really what I'm wanting to see) are probably just as pretty down toward San Diego.

Keep walking!

The View From My Kitchen Window: March 30, 2014

Having a full-grown dogwood right outside my kitchen window is a gift for which I am always very thankful. 

We are finally starting to see a green haze through the woods out there.

The little maple tree (at least I think that's what it is) has turned from red to green

I am hoping that we don't have violent April storms this year because of these two.  At least they should fall away from the house when they come down. 

 

Happy Spring!

Monday Morning Memories. Sniffle.

When she was small, she was my little cuddly Beara.  There was always room in my lap or my chair for some snuggles and some reading time.  We never quite had as much of that as either of us would have liked, but we treasured those moments, and I have been assured that even now she treasures those memories.

As she grew up, she developed her own style and way of doing things.  With a smile on her face, she marches to her own unique drummer. That includes a fascinating sense of humor that I absolutely love.  Quirky humor runs in gallops through the family and those of us who share the gene enjoy each other immensely.

I'll never forget the day that she called me to tell me all about how wonderful college life was and how she thought she had found her calling in life.  I was so honored that she chose to call and share that with me.

When I discovered that she was engaged, I honestly could not believe that there would be any man quite good enough for her.  She is a special treasure and I was not sure that anyone who had not known and loved her all her life could really appreciate just how wonderful she is.

Today was the start of a lifetime journey.  Today they stood together in front of my Dad and vowed to love one another through thick and thin for the rest of their lives.  Today the smiles on the faces and the look in the eyes and the tender care of each other erased any doubts.  He might not fully appreciate her yet, but he will spend the rest of his life working on learning how to do that, just as she spends the rest of her life learning how to love, appreciate, and care for him.

It was a very sweet wedding.  The bride was the most beautiful bride ever ~ at least the most beautiful one since our last family wedding!

So here they are, the new Mr. and Mrs.  Congratulations, Ben and Cara; my sweet niece and my newest nephew.

And isn't that a gorgeous dress?!

Looks like he marches to a fun drummer too.  The grey Texas boots on the left are my brother, the fashionable footwear on the right belongs to the groom.  But the cool boots belong to the bride.

Pictures shared with permission of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Swakopf.

Happy Friday!

Have a good weekend!

Names and Descriptions of God: Ecclesiastes

Because of the way my brain is wired, the book of Ecclesiastes has always been a little challenging for me.

Reading through it looking for names, titles and descriptions of God has given me a different perspective.

A wise woman who has studied Hebrew told me that in the Old Testament when you see the name GOD, that refers to the Creator.  When you see the name LORD, that is a reference to the Creator with whom you have a personal, covenantal relationship.  That has been interesting to think about as I have walked through this project.

As I was reading through Ecclesiastes I realized that throughout the entire book, God is referred to primarily as GOD. There are a few other descriptions such as Maker (which goes along with the name God), Giver, Eternal, Judge, The One to be Feared, and Creator.

For twelve chapters, this is not very many names!

We go through the whole book and these are the only ones I was writing down.  Until I got to Chapter 12.  In Chapter 12 (the final chapter of this book), the Preacher wraps up the book and suddenly you begin to see a gleam of hope in what can seem (to me, anyway) a rather hopeless book.  Here are the last six verses in the English Standard Version:

⁹ Besides being wise, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs with great care. ¹⁰ The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth.  ¹¹ The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. ¹² My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.  ¹³ The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

There.  Did you catch it?  Right there in verse 11   (I added bold and italics to help you see it).

Suddenly, unexpectedly, Solomon refers to God as the ONE SHEPHERD.

Think on that a while.

Walkabout Wednesday

A funny thing happened to me the other day.

I was shopping for a new dress.  I know, that's pretty unusual, but that is not the funny thing that happened.  I went to my favorite thrift store that is 10 miles to the east, only to find a whole lot of frayed, faded, and buttonless nothing.  So I drove to the thrift store that is 10 miles to the west.

On the way, I stopped at Walmart to buy a spool of thread.  When I got back to the Little Red(neck) Truck, I started hearing a funny high-pitched noise.

Little Red is in what my mother would call "interesting" condition.  So my first thought was that there was something a little off with something in the truck.  But I couldn't pin it down and it kept on quietly making weird noises.  It would do several quick little clicks and then a high pitched tone, almost as if it were trying to communicate via Morse Code.  It wasn't terribly loud but it was peculiar.

I had an episode of Flashpoint running before I set off, so of course I wondered what terrorist had planted a bomb in the truck.....!

I held the phone up to my ear, but it was not coming from the phone.

I have a new insulin pump with continuous glucose monitoring (that is making me a little nutso and has cost me several nights' sleep).  It was not the pump.  I couldn't check the sensor for the glucose monitoring system, as that is firmly attached to my lower belly (and I am not nearly flexible enough to get my ear down there, especially in the Walmart parking lot), but I did not think that was the problem.

I drove on to the thrift store and when I turned off the car, the noise stopped.  Aha!  That must be what is causing the.....oh wait, never mind....it started up again.  There are not many people who visit that thrift store (for a number of good reasons), but I'm sure that the few who were there were frightened off by my behaviour as I sat there trying to get to the bottom of the mystery.

I played with the headlight switch.  No.

I tried the windshield wiper switch.  No.

I fiddled with the switch that controls the air conditioning; it is down under where the radio used to be once upon a time.  No

I looked in the glove compartment.  Nothing

I looked in the little compartment between the seats.  Nothing again.

I got out and looked under the seats.  Still nothing.

I was at my wits' end (some people say I was past it, but never mind that).

Finally I figured it out.  It was Mr. Marvelous' spare van key! 

No, it really does not look like a key, but apparently it is

Whew!  What a relief to have that figured out!

I called Mr. Marvelous; perhaps he was in the vicinity and it was reacting to the van being close by...?

No, he was in Scottsboro (where they were having snow flurries!).

He was in the middle of work, but kindly suggested that the battery was possibly dying and needing replacement and we would take care of it when he came home.  We quickly laughed about how crazy it was that a KEY would be the culprit of the noise and went on our individual ways.

When I walked into the thrift store, something was not quite right.  The noise was still annoyingly going on, but it just did not seem to be coming from the key.  The key was in my right pocket, and the noise seemed to be coming from my left, and was not muffled from being in a pocket.

What in the world??

I stood there for a moment (confirming everyone's suspicions about my sanity).  Finally I looked down and saw my pedometer.  I held it up to my ear.  Yup!  That was it!

I looked at the display and noticed that it said "Alarm".  You got that right, buddy!

I tried to scroll through and turn it off, but it absolutely refused; it was alarmed and everyone else needed to be as well!

After standing in the middle of the aisle figuring this out, I realized that I was impeding traffic.  I thought about explaining but figured it was best just to pretend that I was responding to an urgent, life-or-death page (does anyone even carry pagers anymore?)

I was able to get the battery out and guess what?

The noise stopped!

I am hoping that I have a spare battery squirreled away somewhere.

Personally, I think that the exposure to the Walmart environment was just too alarming for the poor thing.

That or it was sending Morse Code signals to the Mother Ship.

The View From My Kitchen Window: March 21 and 23, 2014

It's that time of year when things are starting to change quickly.  I glanced out the window at the dogwood tree Friday morning and overnight things had changed.  It has been a long winter (I keep thinking about Bill Murray's lines in Groundhog Day).  Spring has been later than usual for this part of the world.

But finally, here toward the end of March and on the first full day of Spring (which seems significant), the dogwood is finally starting to open up.

Things are moving so quickly now that I have to add a second set of pictures from Sunday!

Work That Matters

Recently Mr. Marvelous and I heard a sermon about heaven.  The preacher talked about the work of heaven and it got me thinking.

What will it be like to have work to do which we enjoy doing, that we are good at, that we have infinite time to perfect, and that brings honor and glory to God?  I don't know about you, but that thought fills me with great joy and peace.

I have a lot of tasks and chores in my role as home-maker.  There are the fun jobs, like canning or cooking or needlework, that give me great satisfaction and put a smile on my face.

But when I walk into the kitchen after preparing a special meal and see the mess that awaits me, or when I look at walls that need to be dusted and cleaned, well, those things don't exactly give me joy.  Some of the tasks that mothers and home-makers do just feel like drudgery; things that we do because we have to and if we don't do them no one else is going to.

Often these tasks are done (because they are necessary) but like so many other tasks no one else ever really pays much attention to them.  Of course if they are not done people certainly notice, but when they are done and done well, no one really seems to care.  When was the last time someone in your family walked up to the person responsible for keeping bathrooms clean and said something like, "WOW!  My bathroom is soooo clean and my towels are so fresh-smelling!  Thank you!  Good work!!" 

I would love to be able to tell you that I am the kind of person who does these things for God and it doesn't matter if anyone else notices and appreciates them or not, but that would be a lie.   I wish I were that person but I am not.  I crave acknowledgement of the task that I have worked at so hard.  I long to hear someone tell me, "Well done!"  I honestly would like to know what difference it makes to the Kingdom of God if my work is done or not.

One day I will.  One day I am going to be given work to do.  I won't have to wonder if there is something else I should be doing, some better way I ought to be using my time.  The work that I will be given will matter.  It will have its significance, even if it seems to be trivial or frivolous to others (and it won't ~ others will understand that it has as much value as the work that they have been given to do).  I will have an eternity to perfect the work.  I will know without a doubt that God is glorified and honored in what I am doing.  I will know because He will tell me so!

Somehow thinking about that makes the work of each day more of a joy to do.  When I think about having work that matters in heaven, it makes the work here on earth matter more now.  I can have more joy and more peace and contentment in doing what God brings to me each day and doing it to the best of my ability.

At the end of the day as I am drifting off to sleep, I have recaptured the ability to dream about heaven and the work that awaits me there.

By the way, when you get there if you are looking for me, I just might be over in the music section or the fiber arts area. 

Animal Update: BEES!

I've been unsure about bee-keeping.  They were fun to get and fascinating to watch.

 But the actual physical work involved was more than I expected.  I should have realized; we went to classes and heard repeatedly what the weight of a full hive should be to get the hive through the winter.  When one starts hearing the experts talk about "...minimum of 100 pounds..." one really should understand that the hive is going to weigh over 100 pounds.  Each one of those boxes when full and ready to harvest will weigh about 50-75 pounds.  They tell you that over and over in the classes.  But somehow it just didn't register that meant I was going to have to lift a box weighing 50-75 pounds to do the work.


I have been able to work around it.  I can take an empty hive box with me when I go out and lift the frames out one by one into the empty box.  It just takes a good bit more time and work to do that.

So as I said, I have been a little unsure about our future with the bees.

I did get out a couple of weeks ago and did as much of an inspection as I could. 

We have two hives, a strong hive and a weak hive.  The weak hive only has two boxes on it (a hive body and a super, in bee-lingo).  The strong hive has three boxes.  The strong hive was FULL.  It had honey up to the top, the queen seemed to be laying, and there were bees everywhere in there.  I should have realized then that a problem was forming.

The weak hive has bees but was almost completely empty of honey.  Not good.


I re-started the feeding and have been careful about trying to keep the feeders full of sugar water.

Wednesday evening I looked over to realize that the feeders were just about empty.  I went inside and intended to mix up another batch and put it out there.  Unfortunately I got distracted and it never happened.

Thursday morning was laundry day.  I noticed that the bees on the strong hive seemed pretty busy, which reminded me that I still needed to refill the feeders.  Just before I took the last load of laundry out, I opened the door to the back porch to let the cat out.  She was pretty frantic for some reason.  As soon as I opened the door, I heard the bees and discovered why the cat was so frantic.

The bees were swarming!

When a hive gets over crowded, when a new queen  hatches, when any one of a number of things starts to happen, a group of bees will leave the hive to find a new home, and that was happening.

It's an interesting thing to read about and see pictures of.

Some of the videos I have seen were amazing.

There's nothing quite like experiencing it first hand!

I quickly suited up and grabbed the camera and here is what was going on.

But first, I have to share a few disclaimers:

I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination.  Several of my comments are not accurate.  For example, the bees are more likely to be swarming because of over-crowding and not under-feeding.  We are going to try and catch this swarm and have a third hive (more on that later).  So this is not an instructional video, but just a "here-is-what-happened-at-out-house-this-week" kind of a thing. 

And the final look of things:




Final note: I have been informed that if I think whipping up a top-bar hive is the "easy" way to go, I am completely nuts!  Our bee keeper friend/mentor/neighbor came over around dark and gave us some good suggestions and even gave us some scent to put in the hive to try and attract the bees.  He was all ready to try and help us capture the renegades, but we all decided that doing that on that hill after dark was probably not the way to go.

We'll give it a try in the morning and see what happens.  Looks like it is shaping up for a bzzy weekend!

The View From My Front Porch

I know you have already seen pictures from my kitchen window this week, but sunset last evening was too good to pass up.  I was putting things away in the bedroom and glanced out the western window and caught sight of the sun setting behind the clouds.  I grabbed the camera and hurried to the front porch to catch the tail-end of it.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

The View From My Kitchen Window: March 18, 2014

Good morning! 

It's still a little cold for March in Alabama, but the promise of Spring is here....

The dogwoods are trying hard

There is green coming out everywhere

My "Lothlorien" trees are still holding on to their golden leaves, but I am seeing more and more on the ground as they start to wake up.

It's been a long winter for us, but the prolonged anticipation of Spring makes me appreciate the warm sunny days that much more.

Monday Morning Memories

During Advent in 2011, I posted about a new project I was starting here.

I was looking for descriptions of Jesus in the four Gospels.  I completed the Gospels and decided to go on and work through the rest of the new Testament.  Interestingly enough, I finished Revelation around Easter of 2012.  I did not know that was how long it would take me but I do find it curious that the Jesus portion of the project would take me from Advent to Easter.

Then I decided to go to the Old Testament and look for names and descriptions of God.  I have also found a few scattered references to Jesus, and those have gone into the Jesus Jar.

The project has developed along the way and become bigger than I anticipated.  I am enjoying this.  It may take me a few more years to finish, but I figure it is an acceptable long-term project.

I have discovered things that I did not expect.  Some things that were present as far back as Genesis did not strike me until I got to Psalms.  Some of the descriptions make me smile the rest of the day.  Some make my heart sing.  Some remind me of the urgency of sharing Jesus with the people around me who do not know Him.  The jar (another 5 gallon pickle crock) has gotten rather full.

I thought I would start including some of these descriptions here on the blog as I work through the rest of the Bible.  I have just finished the book of Psalms and am moving on to Proverbs.  I'm looking forward to what I find in the Prophets!

This is a one gallon jar.  These are just the ones from the book of Psalms.

So here are a few things to think about today.  In Psalms, we are frequently told to Praise God.  I finally realized that the writers are telling us that God is Praiseworthy ~ Worthy of our Praise.

No matter what happens today, God is worthy of your highest praise.

His peace to your homes.

In Honor of International Pi Day

I am too much of a nerd/geek to let this day pass unmentioned on the blog.  And I have too many fun nerd/geek friends!  So go grab a slice of chocolate pie and a cup of coffee and enjoy the following.  Mike Keith; you, Sir, are a genius and a hero for all nerds!
Note: I have NOT perused his website in its entirety, and therefore can not vouch for the content other than this poem.

Near A Raven

Mike Keith
1995

At the time of its writing in 1995, this composition in Standard Pilish, a retelling of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven", was one of the longest texts ever written using the π constraint, in which the number of letters in each successive word "spells out" the digits of π (740 digits in this example).  For length this poem was subsequently outdone by the nearly-4000-digit Cadaeic Cadenza, whose first section is just Near A Raven with the first three words altered, but since this version is fairly well-known by itself (for example, it was reprinted in Berggren, Borwein and Borwein's "Pi: A Source Book"), we have decided to give it its own web page.
The two postscript lines at the end are part of the mnemonic.
 

            Poe, E.
      Near a Raven

Midnights so dreary, tired and weary.
    Silently pondering volumes extolling all by-now obsolete lore.
During my rather long nap - the weirdest tap!
    An ominous vibrating sound disturbing my chamber's antedoor.
        "This", I whispered quietly, "I ignore".
Perfectly, the intellect remembers: the ghostly fires, a glittering ember.
    Inflamed by lightning's outbursts, windows cast penumbras upon this floor.
Sorrowful, as one mistreated, unhappy thoughts I heeded:
    That inimitable lesson in elegance - Lenore -
        Is delighting, exciting...nevermore.
Ominously, curtains parted (my serenity outsmarted),
    And fear overcame my being - the fear of "forevermore".
Fearful foreboding abided, selfish sentiment confided,
    As I said, "Methinks mysterious traveler knocks afore.
        A man is visiting, of age threescore."
Taking little time, briskly addressing something: "Sir," (robustly)
    "Tell what source originates clamorous noise afore?
Disturbing sleep unkindly, is it you a-tapping, so slyly?
    Why, devil incarnate!--" Here completely unveiled I my antedoor--
        Just darkness, I ascertained - nothing more.
While surrounded by darkness then, I persevered to clearly comprehend.
    I perceived the weirdest dream...of everlasting "nevermores".
Quite, quite, quick nocturnal doubts fled - such relief! - as my intellect said,
    (Desiring, imagining still) that perchance the apparition was uttering a whispered "Lenore".
        This only, as evermore.
Silently, I reinforced, remaining anxious, quite scared, afraid,
    While intrusive tap did then come thrice - O, so stronger than sounded afore.
"Surely" (said silently) "it was the banging, clanging window lattice."
    Glancing out, I quaked, upset by horrors hereinbefore,
        Perceiving: a "nevermore".
Completely disturbed, I said, "Utter, please, what prevails ahead.
    Repose, relief, cessation, or but more dreary 'nevermores'?"
The bird intruded thence - O, irritation ever since! -
    Then sat on Pallas' pallid bust, watching me (I sat not, therefore),
        And stated "nevermores".
Bemused by raven's dissonance, my soul exclaimed, "I seek intelligence;
    Explain thy purpose, or soon cease intoning forlorn 'nevermores'!"
"Nevermores", winged corvus proclaimed - thusly was a raven named?
    Actually maintain a surname, upon Pluvious seashore?
        I heard an oppressive "nevermore".
My sentiments extremely pained, to perceive an utterance so plain,
    Most interested, mystified, a meaning I hoped for.
"Surely," said the raven's watcher, "separate discourse is wiser.
    Therefore, liberation I'll obtain, retreating heretofore -
        Eliminating all the 'nevermores' ".
Still, the detestable raven just remained, unmoving, on sculptured bust.
    Always saying "never" (by a red chamber's door).
A poor, tender heartache maven - a sorrowful bird - a raven!
    O, I wished thoroughly, forthwith, that he'd fly heretofore.
        Still sitting, he recited "nevermores".
The raven's dirge induced alarm - "nevermore" quite wearisome.
    I meditated: "Might its utterances summarize of a calamity before?"
O, a sadness was manifest - a sorrowful cry of unrest;
    "O," I thought sincerely, "it's a melancholy great - furthermore,
        Removing doubt, this explains 'nevermores' ".
Seizing just that moment to sit - closely, carefully, advancing beside it,
    Sinking down, intrigued, where velvet cushion lay afore.
A creature, midnight-black, watched there - it studied my soul, unawares.
    Wherefore, explanations my insight entreated for.
        Silently, I pondered the "nevermores".
"Disentangle, nefarious bird! Disengage - I am disturbed!"
    Intently its eye burned, raising the cry within my core.
"That delectable Lenore - whose velvet pillow this was, heretofore,
    Departed thence, unsettling my consciousness therefore.
        She's returning - that maiden - aye, nevermore."
Since, to me, that thought was madness, I renounced continuing sadness.
    Continuing on, I soundly, adamantly forswore:
"Wretch," (addressing blackbird only) "fly swiftly - emancipate me!"
    "Respite, respite, detestable raven - and discharge me, I implore!"
        A ghostly answer of: "nevermore".
" 'Tis a prophet? Wraith? Strange devil? Or the ultimate evil?"
    "Answer, tempter-sent creature!", I inquired, like before.
"Forlorn, though firmly undaunted, with 'nevermores' quite indoctrinated,
    Is everything depressing, generating great sorrow evermore?
        I am subdued!", I then swore.
In answer, the raven turned - relentless distress it spurned.
    "Comfort, surcease, quiet, silence!" - pleaded I for.
"Will my (abusive raven!) sorrows persist unabated?
    Nevermore Lenore respondeth?", adamantly I encored.
        The appeal was ignored.
"O, satanic inferno's denizen -- go!", I said boldly, standing then.
    "Take henceforth loathsome "nevermores" - O, to an ugly Plutonian shore!
Let nary one expression, O bird, remain still here, replacing mirth.
    Promptly leave and retreat!", I resolutely swore.
        Blackbird's riposte: "nevermore".
So he sitteth, observing always, perching ominously on these doorways.
    Squatting on the stony bust so untroubled, O therefore.
Suffering stark raven's conversings, so I am condemned, subserving,
    To a nightmare cursed, containing miseries galore.
        Thus henceforth, I'll rise (from a darkness, a grave) -- nevermore!
                        -- Original: E. Poe
                        -- Redone by measuring circles.