I love the fall, especially here in the Pacific Northwest. There is no better season, but spring has its good points.
My birthday is right smack dab in the middle of spring. The skies are clear and blue and this lends itself to long days of hiking. The children can play outside without getting chilled, and the computers get a much-needed rest.
I also spend much less time on the internet. This translates to fewer blogs. Right now, I am sitting on my couch telling my children to get outside into the sunshine. Ridiculous! Just so I can have something posted this week. Preposterous! I am going to get off my derriere and do something offline. I'll be back to post again when the sun goes down, or when I have something worthwhile (in my mind) to say.
Now step away from your computer, and go soak up some sunshine before it goes into hiding.*
*This is specifically aimed at people located in Portland, Oregon.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Words......
At church, we have been having a message series on words for the past few weeks. Their ability to build up or tear down. Their ability to speak truth or lies. Their ability to hurt or to heal.
We all have experience with the power of words. My mother related a story from her childhood about how the careless use of words can leave scars that never go away. I teach this to my children and I ask them to be honest with me if my words hurt them. I was bullied with words for the better part of my childhood so I am grateful to have had parents who used their words to build me up. I have used words to make someone else feel as bad as I did, and I carried that guilt around for years, until I chose to apologize.
The words we choose not to say can be just as powerful as the ones we do speak. When we choose not to say something hurtful, we choose not to plant weeds in our hearts or the hearts of others. But wouldn't it be better to say something kind rather than nothing at all? Tell people you are proud of them, or that you love them. Tell someone how much you appreciate them in your life. You might think they know, but hearing it could be the one thing that gets them through the day with a smile instead of anger.
Words of condolence can be very difficult. We all want to dispense words of wisdom that will help the bereaved through his time of grief, but we don't want to sound cliché. The perfect words that will offer comfort but not come off sounding like we know what he is going through. Profound words. Meaningful words. When we can't find the perfect words, we often say nothing. All we need to say is "I love you."
Kind and loving words are meant to be shared. Left unspoken, they can be the bitterest words of all.
We all have experience with the power of words. My mother related a story from her childhood about how the careless use of words can leave scars that never go away. I teach this to my children and I ask them to be honest with me if my words hurt them. I was bullied with words for the better part of my childhood so I am grateful to have had parents who used their words to build me up. I have used words to make someone else feel as bad as I did, and I carried that guilt around for years, until I chose to apologize.
The words we choose not to say can be just as powerful as the ones we do speak. When we choose not to say something hurtful, we choose not to plant weeds in our hearts or the hearts of others. But wouldn't it be better to say something kind rather than nothing at all? Tell people you are proud of them, or that you love them. Tell someone how much you appreciate them in your life. You might think they know, but hearing it could be the one thing that gets them through the day with a smile instead of anger.
Words of condolence can be very difficult. We all want to dispense words of wisdom that will help the bereaved through his time of grief, but we don't want to sound cliché. The perfect words that will offer comfort but not come off sounding like we know what he is going through. Profound words. Meaningful words. When we can't find the perfect words, we often say nothing. All we need to say is "I love you."
Kind and loving words are meant to be shared. Left unspoken, they can be the bitterest words of all.
Monday, March 10, 2014
Compare before you share.
At the start of this year, my husband began unfriending people on Facebook for posting/sharing "I Hate so-and-so" statuses or memes. He gave very little warning and I thought that was unfair. But today, I have decided to do something similar except that I am giving one week's notice.
My unfriending will be of people who blindly post shocking "facts" without first checking their validity. Here is the propaganda being spread as fact that sparked this housecleaning.
What are some past offenses that would now have you dropped from my list of friends? Just by way of example:
The waitress who was stiffed for being a lesbian. Not true, yet that one spread like wildfire. The retraction was not nearly as widespread as the lie. If you want to find it, read down to the 7th paragraph.
ANYTHING about a major change on Facebook. If it didn't come to you in an email or wasn't posted by the appropriate administrative section of Facebook, question it.
We are all, supposedly, intelligent human beings with the power of discernment. If not, then we know you at least have the internet and the ability to cut and paste. So cut and paste that frighteningly shocking revelation into Snopes or Google and do some research.
Believe it or not, tone is apparent. All capital letters, exclamation points, winking emoticons all get the mood across. I don't need a crystal ball to know why you are sharing this propaganda.
Some of you truly want to inform/warn people and are genuinely concerned about their well being. These will be given the benefit of the doubt and reminded to check their facts. A second infraction will be cause for removal.
Some people post these things maliciously with the intent to rile people up. Those will be unfriended immediately. Likewise for the sheep who share it because, if it is on the internet it must be true. I have no time for such ignorance.
The more unbelievable the headline, the more likely it is to not be true. I know this is not always the case. There are atrocities happening in the world every day, so it is easy to accept everything you read as fact. Do not! Be informed. Be proactive. Be a thinking person.
I know I am not faultless in this arena. I want to be told if I have jerked my knee. Don't stand on ceremony. Show me where I have erred. Then unfriend me.
My unfriending will be of people who blindly post shocking "facts" without first checking their validity. Here is the propaganda being spread as fact that sparked this housecleaning.
What are some past offenses that would now have you dropped from my list of friends? Just by way of example:
The waitress who was stiffed for being a lesbian. Not true, yet that one spread like wildfire. The retraction was not nearly as widespread as the lie. If you want to find it, read down to the 7th paragraph.
ANYTHING about a major change on Facebook. If it didn't come to you in an email or wasn't posted by the appropriate administrative section of Facebook, question it.
We are all, supposedly, intelligent human beings with the power of discernment. If not, then we know you at least have the internet and the ability to cut and paste. So cut and paste that frighteningly shocking revelation into Snopes or Google and do some research.
Believe it or not, tone is apparent. All capital letters, exclamation points, winking emoticons all get the mood across. I don't need a crystal ball to know why you are sharing this propaganda.
Some of you truly want to inform/warn people and are genuinely concerned about their well being. These will be given the benefit of the doubt and reminded to check their facts. A second infraction will be cause for removal.
Some people post these things maliciously with the intent to rile people up. Those will be unfriended immediately. Likewise for the sheep who share it because, if it is on the internet it must be true. I have no time for such ignorance.
The more unbelievable the headline, the more likely it is to not be true. I know this is not always the case. There are atrocities happening in the world every day, so it is easy to accept everything you read as fact. Do not! Be informed. Be proactive. Be a thinking person.
I know I am not faultless in this arena. I want to be told if I have jerked my knee. Don't stand on ceremony. Show me where I have erred. Then unfriend me.
Monday, March 3, 2014
I'm Kathleen and I am a baking snob
Group: "Hi, Kathleen!"
The topic of this blog may seem kind of light compared to my other posts, but I feel that it is serious and needs to be addressed. You see, aside from being very opinionated about many controversial subjects, I also happen to be an avid baker. Where I was once frightened to try anything that is not printed in my Cooking Bible According to Betty Crocker, I now seek out new ways to challenge myself in the culinary arts.
Some may say it is just me getting on my it's-only-homemade-if-it's-from-scratch high horse, but looking up recipes for cake pops is making me feel like singing a particular Patsy Cline song over and over and over and over....
Yes, I said cake pops. I told you it was serious.
Boxed cake mix is NOT, in and of itself, an ingredient. It is a handy short-cut if you are in a hurry or have no patience or skills in the baking arena. But I was specifically searching for a scratch cake pop recipe for use with my cake pop maker (C.P.M.). It is a gift from a couple of Christmases ago and I am finally ready to try it out.
I've never really trusted cake pops and have never eaten one. After a little research, I now know how they are traditionally made and I am glad that I have chosen to refrain. The idea of baking a cake with the intention of crumbing it up and mashing it together with canned frosting (EEW!) and presenting it to people as something to be ingested leaves me feeling a bit queasy. Kind of like taking the efforts of a child at his first birthday party and serving it up to your guests. I guess the only good thing you can say about these treats is that they are truly handmade.
My C.P.M. did come with an instruction book that also contains some "recipes," if you consider throwing a box of mix into a bowl with some oil and water a recipe. Pardon me. Is that my snobbery showing?
I really find something satisfying about taking a bunch of ingredients and combining them to create something delicious, and then decorating it so that people think it is too pretty to eat. But the taste is the most important part. If it tastes like cardboard, or worse, then all the frills and furbelows won't save it. To me, baking is a work of love. I do not do a lot of things exceptionally well but this is one area where I shine. So it feeds my soul to feed others. The best way for me to do this is from scratch.
Although I love to bake, I have no background in chemistry. I did not take it in high school and I don't necessarily understand how the ingredients I mix together become a cake instead of a lump of goo. Once, I forgot to add baking soda to my chocolate chip cookie dough. When I opened the oven door, I found a soupy lake in the middle of the baking sheet. I learned that baking soda is needed to make the cookies hold together and rise, but my knowledge ends there. Maybe someday I will take the time to study and understand the importance of ratios of salt and baking powder to flour, but for now I need a recipe to follow.
So I continue my search for the perfect cake pop batter recipe, from scratch. I may have hit upon a couple of ideas and now it is time to test them out. My poor family must suffer as my tasting guinea pigs. They don't mind. It's all in the name if deliciousness!
The topic of this blog may seem kind of light compared to my other posts, but I feel that it is serious and needs to be addressed. You see, aside from being very opinionated about many controversial subjects, I also happen to be an avid baker. Where I was once frightened to try anything that is not printed in my Cooking Bible According to Betty Crocker, I now seek out new ways to challenge myself in the culinary arts.
Some may say it is just me getting on my it's-only-homemade-if-it's-from-scratch high horse, but looking up recipes for cake pops is making me feel like singing a particular Patsy Cline song over and over and over and over....
Yes, I said cake pops. I told you it was serious.
Boxed cake mix is NOT, in and of itself, an ingredient. It is a handy short-cut if you are in a hurry or have no patience or skills in the baking arena. But I was specifically searching for a scratch cake pop recipe for use with my cake pop maker (C.P.M.). It is a gift from a couple of Christmases ago and I am finally ready to try it out.
I've never really trusted cake pops and have never eaten one. After a little research, I now know how they are traditionally made and I am glad that I have chosen to refrain. The idea of baking a cake with the intention of crumbing it up and mashing it together with canned frosting (EEW!) and presenting it to people as something to be ingested leaves me feeling a bit queasy. Kind of like taking the efforts of a child at his first birthday party and serving it up to your guests. I guess the only good thing you can say about these treats is that they are truly handmade.
My C.P.M. did come with an instruction book that also contains some "recipes," if you consider throwing a box of mix into a bowl with some oil and water a recipe. Pardon me. Is that my snobbery showing?
I really find something satisfying about taking a bunch of ingredients and combining them to create something delicious, and then decorating it so that people think it is too pretty to eat. But the taste is the most important part. If it tastes like cardboard, or worse, then all the frills and furbelows won't save it. To me, baking is a work of love. I do not do a lot of things exceptionally well but this is one area where I shine. So it feeds my soul to feed others. The best way for me to do this is from scratch.
Although I love to bake, I have no background in chemistry. I did not take it in high school and I don't necessarily understand how the ingredients I mix together become a cake instead of a lump of goo. Once, I forgot to add baking soda to my chocolate chip cookie dough. When I opened the oven door, I found a soupy lake in the middle of the baking sheet. I learned that baking soda is needed to make the cookies hold together and rise, but my knowledge ends there. Maybe someday I will take the time to study and understand the importance of ratios of salt and baking powder to flour, but for now I need a recipe to follow.
So I continue my search for the perfect cake pop batter recipe, from scratch. I may have hit upon a couple of ideas and now it is time to test them out. My poor family must suffer as my tasting guinea pigs. They don't mind. It's all in the name if deliciousness!
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