Pictures

Christmas is over, the new year is about to begin, and life is good!

PB's son, the Marine came out for a visit, he is about to go to Japan for a couple of years.

My son is about to get out of the Army, we hope he can come for his first visit (out here) soon after that.

We had another visitor today, I spooked him or her when I went out the door, that's one of the feral donkeys that roam loose out here.











Then there's Pekoe, my little baby girl, she's only 11 years old, though in dog years, that's pretty old.

This is PB's latest project, he made another pair of sandals, they are still a work in progress, but so far they are working pretty well.

This is a good view of the solar panels on the roof. The ones in the foreground are Harbor Freight solar panel kits, we have wire and deer netting over the panels to protect them from hail. The panels in the background are on a frame and can follow the sun, it's a manual system done with a rope strung through some conduit that goes through the roof over the porch.

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Merry Christmas!

Since it's after midnight, I can officially wish you a Merry Christmas! There will be no "happy holidays" around here, I give you a full on Merry Christmas as this IS what the "holiday" truly is, no apologies required. Anyhoo, on Christmas Eve, we had our Christmas Eve church special, it was great fun, and it was my piano debut, I was part of a musical trio backing the choir. I played piano, one friend played violin and my other friend played guitar. We all pretty much know how to play our respective instruments, but we all had the same issue to get past, namely playing in public, being nervous, but we each played well, and the choir sang loud enough to mask any mistakes we made, LOL! We practiced a lot, and it paid off, the program went very well, everyone thinks I can play piano now, it will not be long and the church will expect me to start playing at church, the biggest problem about that is PB, he didn't like sitting without me, and somehow I don't think he will sit with me in front of the church (grin)!

I have been eyeballing a keyboard on line, it's the Yamaha YPG-235 76-key Portable Grand Graded-Action USB Keyboard, I listened to it on YouTube today, I had to wipe the drool off of my computer... I have been saving up my Amazon ad credits to purchase this keyboard, so if you love me (or at least enjoy reading my ramblings here), and you are going to be buying something on Amazon anyhow, please go through one of my Amazon links, even if you don't buy what is on the link, just click on the link then go on and buy whatever you were going to buy on Amazon, I'll get the credit from that sale, every little bit helps, thanks!!!!

This is the keyboard:

Here is a video that shows just a tiny bit of what this keyboard is capeable of. I tried to find a video of someone actually playing, but couldn't find one I was happy with, so here is what I did find, a great original song played on the Yamaha YPG-235.



OK, I just found someone actually playing this keyboard, enjoy!




Oh man, do I ever suffer from YTADD, for those who don't know what that is, it's YouTube Attention Deficit Disorder, that's what happens when you are looking for YouTube videos and start looking at all the other videos that show up on the page... I went from looking for videos on the keyboard to watching Yuri Lane, harmonica beatbox extraordinaire! If you have never heard Yuri Lane, look him up on YouTube, you're in for a huge treat.

Yes, Yuri is making ALL those sounds with his MOUTH at the same time he is playing his harmonica! How cool is that?!

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Cookie Recipe

It's getting down to the line, many of us are scrambling to get the last minute Christmas stuff done. Here is a great last minute cookie recipe you can make for yourself, your guests or to give for gifts. You basically use cake mix as the base, from there you can add just about anything you want to customize your cookies. I had an out of date chocolate cake mix, I wasn't willing to toss it out, but I didn't trust using it to make a cake, so I used it to make a batch of chocolate cookies, I did add about a teaspoon of baking powder. They turned out pretty good, not quite as good as honest to goodness scratch made cookies, but they were still homemade and pretty tasty. The only thing I would do differently (on the chocolate ones) is I would add about a half cup of sugar, they weren't as sweet as I thought they should be. Another addition I am thinking of is candied cherries pushed into the center of each chocolate cookie.... yum!

Cake Mix Cookies

Using a purchased cake mix to make cookies is a fun way to save time in the kitchen. This recipe will work with any flavor of cake mix. You can also use Homemade Cake Mix.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:

* 18 oz. pkg. cake mix (any flavor)
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 egg

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients at low speed until dry ingredients are moistened and dough is thoroughly mixed. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls 2" apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 9-12 minutes. Cool two minutes on cookie sheets, then remove to wire racks to cool.

If using chocolate cake mix, add 2 Tbsp. water along with egg. You can stir in chocolate chips, coated candy pieces, chopped nuts, or oatmeal. Frost the cookies, using canned frosting, or make sandwich cookies by spreading frosting between two cookies. These Cake Mix Cookies should be stored tightly covered at room temperature so they stay soft.

Original recipe can be found here:
http://busycooks.about.com/od/cookierecipes/r/cakemixcookies.htm



All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

A Midnight Snack Gone Wrong

Tonight I went under the skycastle to get a jar of peanut butter. Taking a flashlight, I slipped out the door quietly so I wouldn't wake anyone up (PB or the Pekoe), it was late and all is quiet. I entered the cave like area under the house, it's dark, there are a lot of boxes and stuff down there. Before I entered the space, I check the dirt to see if there are any animal tracks, I an not interested in being down there with any other critters, there is no door, just the opening that goes into the space under the house, I see nothing out of the ordinary. I enter and begin working my way around the boxes and junk under there... then I see it, lying on the dirt, between myself and the peanut butter, a fully intact, (apparently) freshly dead bird, next to the bird is something unidentifiable, it was smaller than the bird, partially eaten, glistening in the light of my LED flashlight... I stop in my tracks, I hear nothing, I look around, I see nothing moving...

...I'm not creeped out by the dead bird, nor the partially eaten unidentifable whatever...

I am however, wondering just exactly what did I disturb that had just been having dinner under there...

I left without the peanut butter...




All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Updates

Yeah, I admit it, I've been ignoring my writing here... so here are the updates I've been neglecting. PB and I are doing just fine, life has been going on more or less as normal. I've been working more, cleaning both local churches now. I've been cleaning my church (our community church) for several months now. The other church in our community, the Baptist one, they have 2 dorm rooms that are typically used for traveling missionaries, each side has 5 or 6 sets of bunk beds, a full or queen sized bed, plus a little furniture here and there, each side has 2 showers, 2 toilets plus a separate room with 2 sinks. They like them cleaned just before new people show up, there is no point cleaning after they leave, everything gets horribly dusty within a few days anyhow, so I clean within a day or so of someone new coming in. I clean the Baptist church sanctuary about once a month, they don't require it any more often.

My church is a different story, I clean it at least once or twice a week, it depends on the the time of the month, food is served on a weekly basis, so I clean after food is served. We also have first Sunday dinner which both churches attend at our church, second Sunday dinner is held at the Baptist church. We eat a lot at church LOL. That means a lot of food spills, crumbs, all the grass, grass burs and dirt tracked in downstairs where the dining and kitchen areas are.

This is on top of the caretaker job I have, plus the various this and that little jobs, usually barter based. I'm not complaining, not at all, I enjoy being busy, I also enjoy having flexible schedules, sometimes I have to juggle things a bit to fit everything in, but all in all it's not bad.

It was bound to happen, being around more people, I finally got sick, I've been down for over a week now, it's finally getting better, but now PB is getting it. It all started out a week ago on Friday, I was leading the praise and worship service at church, it was decided that we would do our Christmas choir rehearsal immediately following the P&W service. I wasn't going to participate in the Christmas special, but it turned out that no one there knew how to work the music player in the church so I stayed to do that. I ended up singing too, I could feel my throat getting sore then. By the next morning, I had a full blown sore throat complete with a dry hacking cough. I thought it would only last a few days, nope, it has lasted over a week now. PB was such a sweetie, keeping the sky castle warm for me. Now it's my turn to nurse him.

I'm sitting here listening to Rush Limbaugh on the internet, it's streaming through a station we used to listen to in the DFW area, that means hearing the "local" news for that area, I have to tell you I don't miss living there, I'm hearing about all the car wrecks and traffic problems, on Dec 22, it will be 3 full years away from all of those headaches, I don't miss any part of it.

Here I sit, blowing my sore nose, glad most of the coughing is over, I went to church yesterday, it was basically the first time I'd been fully dressed in something besides PJs in over a week. I cleaned my church on Saturday, I was still sick but the church needed to be cleaned and I didn't expect to see anyone there. One of the ladies from the church did show up with a box of hay for the manger scene. She fussed at me for getting out while I was still sick, my reply was it needed to be done, we were going to have our first Sunday dinner the next day and I hadn't been up there that week to clean, and it did need it, badly! I also took the opportunity to practice on the piano. I'm getting better and better on it. I played a little before church on Sunday, one of the other ladies up there asked me how many years had I been playing... she didn't believe me that I hadn't been playing all of my life. Those lessons are really paying off! My biggest problem is my fingers get nervous when I am playing in front of anyone. So I need to play in front of people more and more.

That's enough for now, I have to get after the dishes, I've really let things go this last week.




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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Music

I have a new sponsor, this is for a great company that teaches you how to play piano by ear. I have tinked on the piano since I was a kid, though I haven't touched one in years. I never learned how to read music, I could put together a few chords, as long as they were easy ones (the key of C mostly). I had always hit this glass ceiling of playing. I have started a new music ministry at our church, at the same time our pianist quit (not related in any way to what I am doing). I had been tinking on the piano a bit at church, with the same results as before. I decided it was time for lessons, I knew I wouldn't be able to afford private lessons, even if I could, I didn't think I could find anyone locally who would teach me the style I wanted to play.

I started looking for gospel piano on line and found this company. They offer a course specific to gospel style of playing (think music you would hear at a black gospel church). I started to order just the first course, but they offered a great deal if I would go ahead and get the whole course, they offered a payment plan so I ordered the whole thing. I am so glad I did, I have only watched the first DVD lesson and it has made such a difference in my playing. I can't wait to watch the rest of the DVD lessons and implement what I learn.

Today was another praise and worship service at church, afterward we had our first rehearsal for our Christmas music special. Between the end of the praise and worship service and the rehearsal, I was practicing on the piano, the other people herd me, which was the point, my fingers get nervous when I think anyone can hear me, so I need to practice when other people are around to get used to it. Anyhoo, we started our rehearsal, we were using recorded Christmas music CDs, one of the songs just was in the wrong key for everyone to sing, it also went too fast for everyone's liking. The leader of the Christmas music program asked me to play that song on the piano, and I agreed! I can't believe I'm doing this. I played the song, Joy To The World with our violinist and guitar player, this is going to be an instrumental version. I found the song quite easy to play. I would probably NOT be doing this if I hadn't started my lessons with this company.

Check them out, if you have ever wanted to play piano (or organ, guitar, drums or vocals), you don't have to be able to read music (I don't read music), this teaches you to play by ear. It doesn't matter if you can play or not, they can teach you. I chose gospel style, they teach other styles too, but they specialize in gospel styles.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Good Quote

This is something I read on line, it's pretty accurate

What ever you give a woman, she will make it greater! Give her sperm, she will give you a baby. Give her a house, she will give you a home. Give her groceries, she will give you a meal. Give her a smile, she will give you a heart. She multiplies & enlarges what she is given. So, if you...give her crap, be ready for a ton of shit!

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

The Prodigal Son

Many years ago, I found a great gospel piano player and singer, Keith Green, his songs are like mini-stories told from the heart. Unfortunately for the rest of us, he was taken all too soon in a private plane crash in '82. Fortunately his music is still alive and well and still touches those who listen.

As part of my new music ministry I often choose at least one Keith Green song to play, this time I chose a song that is not found in any hymnal, it's called "The Prodigal Son", this song always brings tears to my eyes. While looking around the internet, I found a video, a mini-movie played to this song, it really brings this Biblical parable into the 21st century, please play this video, listen to the words, I hope you are as touched by this song (and video) as I am.


The Prodigal Son by Dean L Bauman from dean l bauman on Vimeo.



All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

My Mop Came In! Review

It finally came in, no I'm not complaining about how long it took, especially since the shipping was free (it took less than a week), I just couldn't wait to get it! I used the mop yesterday, at the church where I clean and at a lady's house where I clean. I am so impressed with this mop, it works even better than my original microfiber mop. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this mop!

When I received the box from UPS (thanks Bobby! You are the best!), the box looked too small to contain this mop. I opened it and discovered the mop handle is shipped in 2 parts, there were no instructions in the box, but it was pretty simple to put the two parts together, they snap into place. In the box I found the handles, 3 microfiber mop pads, and 2 bottles, I only expected to get 1 bottle, it was a pleasant surprise to get 2 bottles. After going back to Amazon and looking closer, I discovered that you are supposed to get 2. After playing with it for a bit, I washed the pads, you need to do that with any new microfiber product, otherwise you will leave a trail of microfiber dust the first time you use it.

When I got to the church, I swept the floor in the kitchen then I got to work with the mop, I had already filled the bottle with water, up to the first line that is nearly at the top of the bottle, I put in ammonia up to the second line, which ends up being a couple of tablespoons worth. It fit right into the receptacle on the handle with no dripping. The mop is balanced pretty well, though it does weigh a little more than my original microfiber mop. I pumped the trigger on the handle a couple of times to get it going. It began spraying a near perfect rectangle of liquid on the floor just in front of the mop head, the spray pattern was about the same size as the mop pad, not too much, not too little. On the first swipe, I realized that this was working much better than my original microfiber mop, it cleans better and picks up more dirt and liquid, I attribute that to the fact that the pads are much thicker. That means I will not have to rinse the pad as often, that is something you have to do with microfiber mops, just the same as you do with any mop, after you use it so long, you have to rinse them. With this mop, since it's thicker, it doesn't require rinsing as often, and since I have 3 mop pads, I just change the pad instead of rinsing. The only place I know of that you can get the whole mop kit with the extra pads and extra bottle, is through Amazon, if you buy direct from Rubbermaid, you get the mop with one pad and one bottle, you have to pay extra for more pads and bottles, plus you pay for shipping, through Amazon you get the whole kit, mop, 3 pads and 2 bottles with free shipping, that's the best deal I have found to date.

I used it on the floor, then put on a new pad and went to the glass doors (next time I'll do the glass first, that way I can continue using the same pad on the floors), I sprayed the ammonia water on the door and mopped the doors, inside and out. They came so clean! And no streaks, it dried perfectly clear, I also used it on the sliding glass doors on the front of the church, again with near perfect results. Makes me wish there was more to mop in the church! When I left there, I went to my friend's house where I clean, there is much more to mop there. Again, it worked perfectly over there, I used the mop head that I used on the glass at the church, it was clean enough to use on the floor without rinsing beforehand. So far everyone who has seen this mop wants one, one of my friends did buy one a few days after I ordered mine, she also ordered a dust mop head for hers, I wish now that I had gotten one of those too, perhaps next time I order from Amazon, I'll order one of those.

I give this mop a big thumbs up. It works like a Swiffer mop without having to buy refills of the pads and the cleaner.

One warning, do not use chlorine bleach in any way with microfiber material, it will destroy the material, that goes for any microfiber product you are using, and when you wash them, do not use fabric softener with them, it will soak up the fabric softener and will not pick up anything else after that, in fact it will make streaks where you use it. It's OK that it has static cling, and it will when you take it from the dryer, that helps the cloths work even better when you dry dust.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

E gads, Building, Politics, Religion and Buying Stuff

I'm pretty excited on a couple of fronts, first, PB is working on an addition to the sky castle, it started out as the deck on the west side, he expanded the deck then built a room on the end of the deck, this room is separate from the main part of the sky castle, it's a smallish room, meant to be used for storage and such, it can also be used as a guest room during warm weather, I wouldn't put anyone out there during winter without a majorly thick blanket. :)

Next I'm excited about voting day, yeah!!!! I haven't been this excited about voting in a long time, the biggest thing I'm excited about is I don't have to leave the neighborhood to vote, they are having it in a local church and I'll be there. I'll not discuss who I'll be voting for here, if you want to learn that, you'll have to go to my political blog.

Most of my wonderful readers are aware of my recent baptism, I've been a born again Christian since I was a teen, just didn't do the dunk until now. Since the baptism, I have been attending our non-denominational community church, I enjoy every part of it with one exception, the music. It's a bit on the dry side, and that's being kind. Not saying it was bad, the pianist played very well, just slow and sedate. The churches I have attended (regularly) in the past had great music, in fact the church I was saved in, the preacher had formerly been a honky-tonk bar owner, he played honky-tonk style piano, think Great Balls of Fire!, I also come from a very musical family, so I really wanted to spice up the music in church. I talked to our pastor about this and he asked me if I was volunteering for the job... the thing is, it's not a good to complain about something unless you are willing to do something about it, so yes, I volunteered, with the help of a couple of other friends who attend the church and feel the same way I do about the music.

I've never done anything like this before, but that never stops me from trying anything! I chose a variety of gospel and praise music, most with vocals, some without. I had a test run last Friday with a few people, I wanted to test out the music and the equipment at the church, it went very well, everyone enjoyed the music, everyone sang, clapped and moved around, exactly the way I had hoped it would happen. Next Friday, we will be having the first official praise and worship service, I hope a lot of people will attend, I suspect some will come just to see what this will be all about, I hope they enjoy it as much as I do and will keep coming back. It doesn't matter the number of those who attend though, if only those who came on the test run are there, I'll be happy.

Now to my next excitement. I have been pretty busy lately, cleaning houses for people, I now clean for both churches in the community, this is why I haven't been writing much. I prefer using fewer chemicals when I clean, I rely on microfiber cloths to do a lot of the cleaning, they don't require chemicals, just water, and they work great. Many years ago, I purchased a really good Microfiber Mop Kit with Aluminum Pole and Two Pads and I love it, I have had a couple of people want it, you can't find these in stores, only on line. I have seen some cheap knock-offs in stores, have even used a couple, they don't work as well, in fact the cheap ones I have found in the stores are horrible, the handle breaks, the pad doesn't pick up very well, the way the pad attaches to the mop is substandard.

A few weeks ago, I saw a commercial for a Rubbermaid Reveal Spray Mop Kit, it is designed like those Swiffer mops with the liquid cleaner and disposable pads. The difference is the Rubbermaid Reveal Spray Mop Kit uses microfiber pads (no disposable pads to throw away and have to repurchase) and it has a plastic bottle that you can use plain water or fill with water and a couple of tablespoons of the cleaner of your choice (so you don't have to purchase the proprietary Swiffer cleaner liquid). I can't wait to get this, it's supposed to come in next week, it is OK to get this excited about cleaning? LOL!

This mop kit comes with the mop handle, 3 microfiber cleaning pads and a refillable bottle, you put the pad on the mop, you put plain water or water with a little bit of cleaning fluid of your choice (I'll probably use ammonia), the bottle fits in a receptacle on the handle, there is a trigger on the handle you squeeze to spray the water/cleaner, then you mop. I like the idea that I'm getting more pads with this kit, it will save me from having to rinse the pads during mopping, when you use these microfiber mop pads, you have to rinse the pads from time to time.

I checked the Rubbermaid website and found they don't sell the kit, just the separate components, the mop (includes 1 pad and a bottle), the pads and the bottle, if you purchase everything it takes to make the kit from Rubbermaid, it costs significantly more plus you pay for shipping, if you go through the link above or below, you can get the kit (mop, 3 microfiber pads and bottle) with free shipping for significantly less.


I think if you use a Swiffer and you like it, you will love this!

I purchased another item, but that I'll keep under my hat for a while, I'm going to try it out, I hope it works, I'll post something about it later. I'll give you a hint, it has to do with smelling fresh and clean all day, it's completely natural, no chemicals are left on your skin or get on your clothes, and it never runs out.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Better Harbor Freight Coupon!

I received another Harbor Freight coupon flier via email, this one has the 45 watt solar panel kit listed at $169.99, quite a savings even off of the sale price of $199.99. Here is the actual coupon as seen on the individual coupon link:

Here are the links to the flier:
http://widgets.harborfreight.com/wswidgets/common/displayCoupon.do?hdr=mag&week=4410&campaign=a_retail&page=4410a_retail.html&cust=78062728788&keycode=0000

individual coupon link:
http://widgets.harborfreight.com/wswidgets/common/displayCoupon.do?week=4410&campaign=a_retail&page=coupon2.html&cust=78062728788&keycode=0000&single=true

This is good through Nov 25, 2010

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Harbor Freight Coupon Link

I just received this in my email, it's a coupon for solar related items at Harbor Freight, they have the 45 watt solar panel kits on sale for $199.99 in this sale, plus a lot of smaller solar powered items.

http://images.harborfreight.com/hftweb/campaigns/emails/solar103010/solarproducts103010.html?utm_source=solar_103010&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=4310C




All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

City or Country?

On another site, there is a discussion about whether it is better to be in the city or the country in a SHTF situation, the consensus is it would be better to be in the country, the problem is, for those who live in the city now, how are they going to survive? Of course, many believe that if things got really bad, they would abandon the city and head for the country, well I say that ain't going to work very well, those already in the country aren't going to be very welcoming to the hoards leaving the cities if things go bad. Even those living in the country will not be immune from a major SHTF situation if it causes food and/or fuel shortages, the difference is we aren't all crammed into sardine like housing, apartments and such. Also, those in very rural areas tend to not go to the store as often, so by default, we stock up on supplies and are able to go longer between shopping visits. Not leaving the house for a couple of weeks (or longer) is normal, so in a short term disaster, those living in rural areas will be better off than those living in the cities. One person said that living in the city, she would be good for a short time, then she would head for the country, I suspect that is the thoughts of many city folk, here is my response:

I would say where ever you are, city or country, you need to be prepared for short and long term disasters, have a supply of food and water, it doesn't have to be a lot, most disasters are short term, if you are able to get by for at least ...2 weeks without having to leave your home, then you are far ahead of the masses. Get foods that don't require cooking or heating, canned foods, there are lots of rice and noodle dishes that are pre-made in packages that can be eaten right out of the package. It doesn't cost much to buy up a few extra packages of food like this each week or each payday, shop at dollar stores to get good buys. Canned meats, chicken, turkey, ham, tuna... you can even get these in foil packs so they will not take up too much space.

Buy cheap bottled water and store these, if you can't afford it, then recycle plastic soda bottles, just be sure you clean them well and add a few drops of plain chlorine bleach, honestly if you can afford to buy soda, you can afford to buy cheap bottled water, it doesn't need to be the uber expensive water, look for store brands. These tend to take up more space, you can get creative where you store them, line them up in the back of your closet, under your bed...

As you are doing this, and it would be utterly irresponsible if you choose not to, you can be buying up other things that may be needed if you have to shelter in place, things like first aid-bandages, alcohol, aspirin, ibuprofen, tape... if you can afford it, invest in a good first aid kit.

There are lots more things to do to really be prepared, but if you will just START doing it, starting this payday, you will be much better off than if you didn't do anything. Before anyone says "I can't afford to do any of this...", my response is how can you afford not to, do you really think the government is going to take care of you? Remember the last few natural disasters and what those people went though? Do you want to be in that boat?

Shop at the dollar stores to make your money go even farther, save your money for important things, do you really need to eat out at lunch? Bring your lunch to work and you will save lots of money. Cut down on your frivolous expenditures, do you really need every channel on cable or satellite? How much money can you save by getting a cheaper package, or perhaps cutting it off altogether? I know I'm asking tough things of you, but in a SHTF situation, when you are standing there with your world falling apart, will you be wishing you had watched another soap opera or will you be glad you purchased some food and water to get you though whatever problem you are facing...

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Sale Ends Tomorrow!

Just in case you are a procrastinator like me, here is a quick reminder, the sale at Honeyville Farms ends tomorrow, if you are going to order from them, do it asap!

Greetings from Honeyville Farms:

SALE ENDS TOMORROW!  DON'T MISS OUT ON OUR BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR AND YOUR CHANCE TO SAVE 15% ON YOUR ENTIRE ORDER*!  USE COUPON CODE "FALL" DURING CHECKOUT.  HURRY, SALE ENDS TOMORROW, TUESDAY, 10/05/2010 AT 6:00 PM PST.

TO ORDER, VISIT:

http://store.honeyvillegrain.com

Just a friendly reminder that the Honeyville Food Products Sale ends tomorrow evening, 10/05/2010, at 6:00PM, PST (Pacific Standard Time).  Don't miss out on your chance to save 15% on your entire order*.  Just browse to http://store.honeyvillegrain.com and add items to your cart as usual.  During checkout enter the coupon code FALL on the second page of checkout and click Apply to activate your discount.  Your savings will automatically be deducted from the total.  We appreciate you as a customer and hope that we're doing everything possible to earn your business.  Don't miss out on these great savings on top of our everyday low prices.

Don't forget to check out our new products in the What's New Section.  Visit us online at http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/newproducts.aspx.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us directly at the phone number or email address below.

Regards,
Chris Ondatje
Director of E-Commerce
Honeyville Food Products, Inc.
chriso@honeyvillegrain.com
(888) 810-3212 ext. 1001

*OFFER VALID FOR INTERNET ORDERS ONLY.  15% off does not apply to shipping.  Newsletter Discount is valid from Thursday, September 30, 2010 thru Tuesday, October 5, 2010 at 6:00PM PST.  For assistance call (888) 810-3212.
This message was sent by: Honeyville Grain, Inc., 9175 Milliken Ave, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Good Deal on Freeze Dried Foods and Such

Got this in my email today, thought I'd pass it along, it's a good deal and they have super cheap shipping, we all know that the S&H charges always run the bill way up! Has anyone had any dealings with this company? If so, please let me know your experiences with them, good or bad.

Greetings from Honeyville Farms:

SUMMARY:  OUR BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR!  15% OFF YOUR ENTIRE ORDER* from Thursday, September 30, 2010 thru Tuesday, October 5, 2010 at 6:00PM PST.  Simply enter the coupon code FALL during checkout. This week we're introducing our New Survival Backpacks featuring Freeze Dried Entrees.  We're also blowing out our Powdered Whole Eggs by the case with our lowest price of the year!  Save on these and all of your favorites for a limited time.

DISCOUNT CODE:  FALL

http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/newproducts.aspx

LONG VERSION

Don't miss out on our biggest sale of the year!  These 15% off sales are few and far between so make sure to stock up and save.  From Thursday, September 30th, 2010 thru Tuesday, October 5th, 2010 you'll get 15% off of every item in your cart*.  Just order as usual and enter the coupon code FALL during checkout.  The coupon code field is on the second page of the checkout process.  Enter the FALL coupon code, click the APPLY button to the right, and the savings will automatically be calculated.

This week we're introducing 2 new Survival Backpacks featuring Freeze Dried Entrees from Wise Foods.  These kits have everything you need should a disaster occur.   We're also making room for new products by blowing out our Powdered Whole Eggs in the case.  Save an additional 15% on top of our clearance price.  A great buy.

See our CLEARANCE ITEMS at:  http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/clearance.aspx

 Visit us at http://store.honeyvillegrain.com.  ACT NOW as this discount will end promptly on Tuesday October 5th at 6:00PM PST.  If you have any questions, concerns, or just want to place an order over the phone call us, toll-free, at (888) 810-3212.  We're happy to help.

Thanks for your business.

Regards,
Chris Ondatje
Director of E-Commerce
Honeyville Food Products, Inc.
chriso@honeyvillegrain.com
http://store.honeyvillegrain.com
Toll-Free:  (888) 810-3212

*15% off discount does not apply to our already low flat-rate shipping fee of $4.49.  Discount valid for INTERNET ORDERS ONLY placed from Thursday, September 30th, 2010 thru Tuesday, October 5th, 2010 at 6:00PM PST.  For assistance call (888) 810-3212.
This message was sent by: Honeyville Grain, Inc., 9175 Milliken Ave, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Test Kitchen Deodorant Day 3

After using the DIY deodorant for 3 days now, I have to report that it somewhat works, well not that good. I'd say it works at about 80%, it's better than nothing at all, but it does not stop my body odor completely. At the end of the day, I can detect a faint smell of BO in my arm pits, I would feel comfortable standing next to someone, but I would not want to give a hug. Today I gave it the final test, I shaved my underarms, washed very well, then applied the spray, I can say that it didn't sting, and I expected it to. But at the end of the day, I detect a slight BO smell, bummer.

I might try one more thing, I have tea tree oil, I'll add some of that to the spray and give it another try, it is so close to working, I can't help but think that adding tea tree oil might take it the rest of the way and make it work 100%. I'll post another update in a few days.

If nothing else, I will use it as a muscle spray, it is known that ES is good for sore muscles, I'll see how it works for that purpose, I'll also use it as a foot spray, it does have anti-fungal properties, so it's not a total waste.




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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Save Your Sanity

Are you still getting those pre-approved credit card applications in the mail? While it may make you feel proud that you "qualify" for these, let me tell you why it's a bad idea to get those. First, if you read the fine print, usually these aren't really pre-approved, you probably still have to qualify. Second, if it IS legit and someone is giving you another credit card, that may mess up your credit, even if you don't use it, if you needed to get a loan for whatever reason, that credit card may cause you to have too much available credit and it may get you a big fat "NO". Third, it's too risky to have these pre-approved credit applications floating around, suppose that envelope got "misplaced", stolen or you throw it in the trash and someone else gets it, it's possible for someone to take that pre-approved credit application and fill it out, use it, max it out before you even know what hit you.

I used to get these pre-approved credit cards all the time, once a bank I had no dealings with sent me a credit card with a $5000 credit line, I never asked for this, it was a real credit card, not just a pre-approved application... suppose I thought it was just another piece of junk mail and tossed it out without opening it? Suppose someone stole it before it ever got to me, I would have not known about it until it was too late.

So how do you stop this from happening? It's simple, there is a way to opt out of getting any more of these. Here is where you go to opt out, https://www.optoutprescreen.com/
I know this works, I did this years ago and haven't received any pre-approved credit card applications since.

Another thing you might want to do is sign up on the DO NOT CALL registry, this is supposed to make it so that telemarketers cannot call you. https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

Doing these two things will make your life easier and safer.



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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Test Kitchen Deodorant Day 1

I'm trying the DIY epsom salt deodorant right now. I got a clean 8 oz spray bottle (it used to have spray crystal deodorant in it), I poured in water until it was almost to the top, have to leave some space for the epsom salt. I poured this into a non-reactive pan (stainless steel, you could use glass or enamel), I gently heated the water, then added epsom salt (hereafter referred to as ES), I don't have an exact measurement, I'd estimate a quarter to a third of a cup. I stirred until it was dissolved. I tested the liquid, it got a little thick, and when I put some on my skin, it had an oily feel, but only until it dried, then it felt smooth. I poured this mixture into the spray bottle. I cleaned my armpits with regular soap and water, then sprayed the ES water on to my pits. It's funny, I wonder what people will think if they see me sniffing my armpits, well how else will I know if they stink or not? LOL, I'll post how it works later.

One of the things I read yesterday was about magnesium oil, turns out that this substance is known for it's healing abilities, I'm sure you already know about soaking in a ES bath, especially good for sore muscles and such. From what I can glean from the web about magnesium oil, it's a super saturated solution of magnesium chloride and water. When you apply it to your skin, it has the feel of oil, yet it's not an oil and will soak into your skin and leave no oily residue. There are far too many things for me to list here about what this can do for your body, just do a search for "magnesium oil" and you will find everything you ever wanted to know about it.

Magnesium oil is made of magnesium chloride, I made my own using ES which is magnesium sulfate. I'm not a scientist or chemist, but ES has been used for a very long time by humans and is generally considered safe for internal and external use. When I made up the ES solution, I wasn't completely sure if it would act the same way as magnesium oil, but once it became thicker, and I tested it on my skin and it felt like oil, I knew I was on the right track.

I intend to use this on PB as well, I'll use it as a massage oil on his back and arms. He has been working very hard lately, physically hard, his left arm, mainly his elbow is giving him trouble. I hope this will help relieve some of his pain, he tends to be very skeptical about "home remedies", so if he says this works, then we will know it words, it will not just be wishful thinking or the placebo effect.

Now it's time to go outside and get sweaty, hopefully not stinky. :)

Almost forgot to add, this is a great site about ES information
http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/epsom_salts.html

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

DIY Deodorant

I am always on the lookout for natural alternatives for things like deodorant and such. I have used those crystal deodorants off and on for years, they work great to keep the odor down, you still sweat which is a good thing, don't want to clog up those pores, sweating is natural, it's unnatural to try to stop that process. Since the hot months have passed, it's a good time to try out something new without worrying about driving everyone away if this doesn't work. LOL!

I have been reading about epsom salt tonight, from what I have read, this can be used as a natural deodorant too though it's not as common as some other natural deodorants. I am going to try it out and see if it works. I'll make a super saturation of epsom salt and water, put this in a spray bottle and give it a go.

Here is my theory, body odor is caused when the normal bacteria on your skin grow and give off the byproducts of growing and dying, this happens especially well in the warm, dark, moist recesses of your armpits, in your shoes and other areas that get smelly, do something, anything to disrupt the life cycle of the bacteria, and no odor can occur. Baking soda does the same thing, but for some people it's too harsh to the delicate skin under your arms. Some mix it with corn starch and that helps.

I'm going to try the epsom salt saturated water, I'll post how it works.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

This Is Really Sick

Go here to read about a new bill in CONgress, it's about allowing/requiring HHS to ask anyone signing up for social services (food stamps...) about their sexual orientation, (gay, lesbian, trangendered...), that isn't the really bad part, this question isn't just for adults, they will ask SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN this question as well.
http://conservativewithlibertarianleanings.blogspot.com/2010/09/this-is-sick-bill-requiring-children-to.html


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Thanks!

Hello everyone, I just wanted to thank everyone who has clicked on and made purchases through my Amazon links, that is one of my sponsors and it helps me greatly. I get a little commission when anyone clicks on the link and makes a purchase, even if you don't buy what you clicked on, if you buy something else though Amazon after going though the link on this page, I still get a commission on that item, it's not huge, but every little bit adds up.

I opt to get a gift certificate instead of getting a check, that saves me a few dollars (processing fees) and allows me to purchase the things I want and need from Amazon. I should have enough earned up this time to get another payment, I just can't decide what I want to get this time... I have been eyeballing this for doing laundry, it's a Rapid Washer - DIY Manual Hand Washing Machine

Of course for quite a bit less money, I can get a Stainless Steel Square Potato Masher - 5-1/4, I'd bet this would work just as well, this is an industrial sized potato masher, and being made of stainless steel, no worries about rust, it should hold up quite well.

Then there is the Deluxe Household Mop Wringer Pail - 46Pl 14 Qt Oval Mop Pail, this would work great as a wringer for my clothing and other wash related items.

And for the kitchen, I have wanted a grain mill for quite some time, a friend out here has loaned to me her grain mill, I need to get it back to her, though she has an electric one that she likes very well, I still need to get one of these Hand Grain Mill soon. I used it the other day to grind popcorn to make cornbread, we had that with a pot of pressure cooker pinto beans, wow was it good eats!

So many choices, again I want to thank each and every one of you who made Amazon site purchases after going through my links, every little bit goes toward supplying the Sky Castle with all the goodies to make this homestead a little happier. So remember, if you want to help support this site, and you are going to be buying something through Amazon anyhow, I would greatly appreciate it if you would come here first and click on one of the Amazon items on this site, then you can go on and purchase whatever it was you originally wanted to get, I'll get the commission even if it's something different. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

If you have a blog, you might want to consider signing up for your own Amazon seller account, it's very easy, costs nada, you just pick out what you want to promote on your blog, it helps if it is something related to what you are writing about. You can also do review on items you already own and can be purchased through Amazon, it's easy to get started.

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Big John Is Blogging Again

Hey everyone, an internet friend who has been gone way too long from the blogosphere is now back and writing. Some of you already know him, some like him and others do not, that's OK too, we can't all agree with one another all the time but hopefully we can agree to disagree in a civil manner.

Big John has varied interests from survival to dowsing, he has a lot to offer and gives a lot to his readers, he is a bit controversial (in some circles) so he ends up with a lot of trolls leaving comments, there seem to be those who think that John is responsible for taking care of them, well that don't float with John and he is quick to say so, he is very much into personal responsibility, taking care of yourself and your family.

Visit Big John's blog and click on the follow button, let's give him a big welcome back. :)

http://bigjohnlipscomb.blogspot.com/




All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Family Visit, Dogs and Yarn Stashes

It's been quite the month, my Dad has been here since the middle of last month, he left just this morning, driving the 500 mile trip back to the DFW area ( I spoke to him a little while ago and he made it home just fine). I am so proud of him, he's 82 years, he just had knee replacement surgery and he is doing so well! During his rehab, his therapist was amazed at how quickly he was healing and bouncing back, he had lots of motivation though, he wanted to be able to walk up our mountain to get to the sky castle, and he did it with flying colors! We placed a few chairs on the trail going up to the house, at first he did have to sit in each one to rest, but as I expected, by the end of his visit, he used the chairs less and less.

Our little dog Pekoe, a 11 year old long hair chihuahua, usually doesn't like other animals, but she tolerates my Dad's dog who is half chihuahua and half pomeranian, her name is Baby Girl. It's funny, because I call my dog baby girl too, when I tried walking them both down the hill, my dog would go rather slow, my Dad's dog would race around, she's quite a bit younger and way more rambunctious... so I would call out "Baby Girl wait!" and like a good dog, she would stop, but so would my dog, so I would say "Pekoe, let's go", slowly she would start walking and Dad's dog would start running, I would say "Baby Girl, wait!" and they both would stop... it was like herding cats, eventually I would get them both down the hill, more or less at the same time...

I've noticed the weather changing, getting cooler at night, I have been itching to get into my yarn stash and start working again. Last year I learned how to loom knit, this season I decided that I wanted to do more crochet, learn more stitches so I have been pouring over YouTube and have found a wealth of how-to videos on crochet stitches. I wanted to learn some new stitches and make hand or wrist warmers, also known as fingerless gloves, though they are more like fingerless mitts.

I stitch I wanted to learn is called the larksfoot stitch, it looked easy and pretty enough, my mistake was not watching the video AS I crocheted, I watched it a couple of times then tried working it by memory. Oh, did I mention I hate trying to follow a written pattern? I learn much better from visual sources, watching it on video, then if I have a written pattern, I "get it". Well, my pattern doesn't exactly match the original pattern, but I'm happy enough with it, now I have a pair of wrist warmers to help keep my hands warm this winter when I'm sitting at the computer in the middle of the night in the frigid cold.

I also added a little ruffled edge on the bottom of the wrist warmers, it adds a bit of fun and interest and it lets me know which side goes where. The whole thing is very easy to make, I just crocheted a chain stitch using 4 chains per section until I had it long enough to comfortably go around my hand and wrist. I used 2 different yarn colors to make the pattern, I crocheted the (modified) larksfoot stitch until I had a rectangle long enough to go from my knuckles to just below my wrist, I could have made it longer if I had wished. Then I sewed up the sides leaving a space for my thumb. After I had it stitched together, I added the ruffled edge on the wrist side of the wrist warmers.

I might make some more wrist warmers, this time following the pattern a little more closely. I'll post more pictures of whatever I make.




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Wretha,

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It's Sooooo True

I stole this from another website, I can't believe how true this is:

If you are 30 or older, you might think this is hilarious!

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning before the sun came up...Uphill...Barefoot... BOTH ways, in the snow... yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!

But now that I'm over the ripe old age of thirty, uh forty-ish, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia! And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!

I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!

There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Then they would call your home and your parents would spank you AGAIN after you got home! Nowhere was safe!

There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!

Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car..We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless.
We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!

There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". Think of the horror...not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.

And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent...you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances!

We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen...Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!!

There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-finks!

And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove!

And our parents told us to stay outside and play...all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside...you were doing chores!

And car seats - please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place! See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1980 or any time before!



All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Contest-Enter Now!

I don't know about you, but I LOVE freebie giveaways! Go here to enter, it's easy, just fill out the form.

http://selfrelianceadventures.blogspot.com/2010/09/reusable-canning-lids-giveaway.html

The prize is a set of re-usable canning lids, something we can all use, or barter with. :)





All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Stop Big Bro From Killing Small Farms

If you are interested in keeping up with what the government is trying to do with the food we eat, go here to learn more about it and if you don't agree with what is being done, you can do something about it here:

http://conservativewithlibertarianleanings.blogspot.com/2010/09/stop-big-bro-from-killing-small-farms.html


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

I'm Official Now

Well, I did it, I was baptized on Sunday, the church was pretty full, at least it seemed like there were more people there. The service went on as usual, then it was time to get on with the baptism. A good friend was getting baptized the same day, so he went first, it was touching to see, he has had some health problems in the past and chose to be sprinkled instead of the full on dip, it was wonderful to watch.

Then it was my turn, this is my pastor and his wife (you probably understand by now that I don't use names on this blog, at least not without permission), I stood in front of the congregation and spoke a few words, sang Amazing Grace, then we went outside to the stock tank/baptismal. The ambient air temp was warm enough, but the water was cold.

Not too bad, yet...

Yeah, it's cold!

When I stepped into the water and started to sit down, the pastor was trying his best to help me, but it seemed that we were arm wrestling instead, he wanted to hold my hand and arm, I wanted to hold the side of the tank, I knew that tank wouldn't move. The children in the pictures belong to a good friend of ours, they want to be baptized too, it was sweet, they kept asking me questions about being baptized.

After it was over, I went to the bathroom to change into dry clothes, it's not easy peeling wet jeans off, but all in all, everything went pretty smoothly, the weather cooperated, it had been raining all night, we were worried about the condition of the roads, but the morning dawned with full sun and the day was perfect. We didn't hear thunder until well after the service was over.

Once I returned to the congregation, it was time to close the service, Pastor had asked my Dad if he wanted to say something to the congregation, since my Dad used to be a preacher, he jumped at the chance, and wow, I must say that brought back memories, he really enjoyed standing up there, talking to everyone, he prayed, he spoke in tongues, he laughed and cried, I don't know if this church had ever heard anyone speak in tongues before, I'm sure they know about it, but they tend to be a little on the reserved side... I'll find out later what everyone thought, this is a small community and things get around. ;)

Not that I'm really concerned though, I think this church needs a bit of shaking up, I only wish my Dad was here more often, I think he would make a great guest speaker from time to time, and I think the church would love it, I know that Pastor would, I was watching his face while my Dad was speaking, he looked like he was about to burst at the seams, in a good way of course. :)

So now, I feel that I am completely right with the Lord, though I never felt like it was compulsory to be baptized, but still, I knew that some day I would be standing in front of God and would have to answer as to why I hadn't done it when I had the chance many times.

Here is the video of after the baptism, I found the most beautiful rendition of Amazing Grace sung by LeAnn Rimes, I included it in the video.


Sorry, had to temporarily remove the video, it will be back later. :)

Here are some different versions of Amazing Grace, enjoy

	Leann Rimes - Amazing Grace .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

	Terry Downs - Amazing Grace .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

	Sissel Kyrkjeb� - Amazing Grace .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

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