Birthday Cake

At our sing-along at the nursing home last week, I reminded everyone I’d be absent this week because I would be out celebrating my birthday. (I’m also celebrating the Utah Shop Hop, but that’s completely beside the point.) The residents asked how old I’ll be. I guess I should have expected that. We’re always asking how old they are. (For the record, most are in their early eighties. Some are in their nineties, and every now and then you meet a centenarian.) I told them I turn fifty-nine this year. They laughed and said I was still just a baby. I probably should have expected that, too. The last time most of them were fifty-something, you could rent Dirty Dancing on VHS at Blockbuster Video. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: if you want a new perspective on life, spend time with people who’ve seen more of it than you have.

Small Talk

Last Thursday was the closing social for our local Special Needs Activity Program. It’s a picnic the handicapped kids and their parents look forward to every year. Families whose last names begin with the letters A through O were asked to bring salads, and those starting with P through Z brought desserts. It’s a clever way to manage things, but our last name is ALWAYS going to give us a salad assignment. This year I wanted to bring something different, so I cheated just a bit:

Tropical Orange Salad (Dessert)

20 ounces crushed pineapple, drained

6 ounces orange gelatin mix

24 ounces small curd cottage cheese

16 ounces frozen whipped topping

1 cup sweetened coconut flakes

11 ounces mandarin oranges, drained

Mix pineapple, gelatin mix and cottage cheese together in a large bowl. Fold in whipped topping, coconut and about half the oranges. Garnish with remaining oranges. Cover and refrigerate until completely chilled.

Four Drunkard's Paths

Here’s another holiday I’ll bet you didn’t know about: National Learn About Composting Day. Kitchen and garden waste accounts for between a fifth and a third of what we send to the landfill, while much of it could be enriching our gardens instead. Composting requires three basic ingredients: browns (like dead leaves, twigs and small branches), greens (grass clippings, vegetable waste, fruit scraps, and coffee grounds) and water. Having an equal amount of greens and browns and adequate water is important for compost development. Brown materials provide carbon for your compost, green materials provide nitrogen, and water provides moisture to help break down the organic matter. What SHOULDN’T go into the compost pile is just as important: dairy products, fats, meat or bones, cat litter or dog poop, diseased plants, anything treated with pesticides or herbicides, or leaves and twigs from a black walnut tree.

First Border

“We know that charity is a gift bestowed upon us after all we can do. We must pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that we may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ. It seems to me that we receive the Holy Spirit best when we are focused on serving others. That is why we have the priesthood responsibility to serve for the Savior. When we are engaged in service to others, we think less about ourselves, and the Holy Ghost can more readily come to us and help us in our lifelong quest to have the gift of charity bestowed upon us.” -  President Henry B. Eyring

Drunkard's Path

Sally Kristen Ride was born 67 years ago today. I’ve written about her before (https://mombowe.blogspot.com/2016/12/sally-ride.html), so I’ll try not to repeat myself too much. In 2016 I knew she was the first American woman in space (twenty years after the first female cosmonaut). I didn’t know she was also the youngest American astronaut in space, a record she still holds. I didn’t know she was a nationally ranked tennis player before joining NASA. I didn’t know she used to collect stamps. This week (six years after her death which makes her elligible for such an honor) the US Postal Service announced a new stamp recognizing Sally Ride’s achievements. Last year Lego created a play set featuring pioneering women of NASA—Nancy Grace Roman, Margaret Hamilton, Mae Jemison and and of course Sally Ride. I find myself wondering: Did Sally play with Legos as a child?

Four Dutchman's Wheels

Mr. Boo is an unusually quiet tuxedo cat. He seldom makes a sound at all. But the Tuesday after Mother’s Day, he woke up the whole family by meowing loudly. A boiler in their basement was malfunctioning, but at first the Kecskes family in Green Township, Ohio didn’t know what was wrong. Carbon monoxide is odorless, colorless, and tasteless. Unless you have a working detector in the house, it might make you think you had the flu. Or, as the Kecskes family nearly did, you might just go to sleep and never wake up. It’s what could have happened if Mr. Boo hadn’t suddenly decided to make a fuss. The whole family including Mr.Boo and another housecat made it outside safely. Now that all the excitement is over, Mr. Boo is back to being quiet. As his owner puts it, “It's like he's been waiting his whole life to do this one heroic thing.”

As Time Goes By

Herman Hupfield wrote “As Time Goes By” in 1931 for the Broadway musical Everybody’s Welcome, but the song never really got the attention it deserved until it was featured in the 1942 Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman film, Casablanca. I was surprised to read that the original lyrics (omitted in the movie) referred to Einstein’s theory of relativity. I guess for some reason I’d assumed that E=mc2 came after the theoretical physicist’s emigration to the U.S. in 1933. As it happens, he first published his theory of special relativity in 1905. (When I make stupid mistakes like this, I like to blame an indifferent public school education. But the indifference was probably on my part.) “As Time Goes By” made number 2 on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years/100 Songs list. Number 1 was of course Judy Garland’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz.

Dutchman's Wheel

June is just over a week away, so it’s time for a new summer bucket list: stuff to do before summer kicks the bucket. I want to see fireworks – not the lame-and-dangerous driveway kind. Real fireworks like the ones over Sleeping Beauty’s castle. I plan to visit the zoo, the planetarium, the aquarium and at least one museum. I need to roast s’mores and hot dogs over glowing coals. I will shop at a farmer’s market and fill jars with homemade jam. I’m going swimming and hiking and boating with my grandkids. I’ll raise epic heirloom tomatoes. I mean to do picnics and barbecues and Dutch oven dinners. Then there’s homemade ice cream, root beer floats and fresh fruit pies. At least one evening this summer I want to sit and enjoy a sunset from start to finish. I might even go biking, play mini golf, try geocaching or raise painted lady butterflies. Have I left out anything important?

Ain't Misbehavin'

Jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong always said “Ain’t Misbehavin’” was the song that made him famous. It was introduced in an all-African-American revue called Connie’s Hot Chocolates at Connie’s Inn in Harlem in 1929. Satchmo joined the company shortly after the show opened, and he played “Ain’t Misbehavin’” during intermissions. Thomas “Fats” Waller, who wrote the song together with Andy Razaf and Harry Brooks, claimed years later that it was written while they served time for alimony evasion. Whether it's true or not, his story certainly paints the lyrics in a different light. There are several good recordings of this song, but the most interesting may be the one that earned Hank Williams, Jr. a Grammy nomination for Best Male Country Vocal Performance in 1985. How did a 20’s jazz standard become an 80’s country song?

Four Coney Island Rides

“President Howard W. Hunter taught that frequently it is the commonplace tasks that have the greatest positive effect on the lives of others, as compared with the things that the world so often relates to greatness. A persuasive secular teaching of this same principle comes from former Senator Dan Coats of Indiana, who wrote: ‘The only preparation for that one profound decision which can change a life, or even a nation, is those hundreds and thousands of half-conscious, self-defining, seemingly insignificant decisions made in private.’ Those seemingly insignificant private decisions include how we use our time, what we view on television and the internet, what we read, the art and music with which we surround ourselves at work and at home, what we seek for entertainment, and how we apply our commitment to be honest and truthful. Another seemingly small and simple thing is being civil and cheerful in our personal interactions.” – President Dallin H. Oaks

Woven Stars

About a week ago our Scotty was barking at the back door. She does this all the time, but for some reason this time we looked to see what she was barking at. It was A RAT! It darted from the fence to the space beneath the deck. We let the dogs out. While they investigated the deck from the north, the intruder fled south and was gone. We haven’t seen him since, but I’m still freaked out. There’s no such thing as one rat. A pair can produce 2,000 offspring in a year. They can tread water for three days. They can survive being flushed, and can even enter your home through the toilet. They carry up to 60 different communicable diseases including hantavirus, typhus and meningitis. They can chew through electrical wires, cinder block, even lead pipes. So the next time I see a rat, it could be in my pantry, bathroom, or bed. Eek!

Coney Island Ride

May 18 is No Dirty Dishes Day. There’s a holiday I’d be happy to celebrate – a reprieve from the relentless drudgery of scraping dishes, washing dishes, rinsing dishes, drying dishes and putting dishes away. You COULD  celebrate by simply letting greasy pots, slimy bowls and sticky silverware pile up in the kitchen sink (and across the counters) until tomorrow, but eventually you’d still have to dive in and tackle the mess. Another option is to eat off paper plates with plastic flatware until tomorrow. Or better yet, you could eat out for all three meals today; visit that nice bakery nearby for breakfast, a sandwich shop for lunch, and a lovely Indian restaurant for dinner. Hmm. That could get a bit pricey. Here’s a better idea: May 18 is also Visit Your Relatives Day. So . . . if we’re related, and I just happen to pop by today around mealtime, I guess you won’t be too surprised.

Four London Blocks

I’m not sure who said, “Write what you know.” I’ve seen it attributed to so many different authors. It seems like good advice, though, and it’s why I haven’t written much about sports or athletes. To me, the term “sports trivia” is a redundancy. Everything I know about sports I learned in a few short months on a high school track team and a few short years watching my kids in bowling or swim teams, or playing soccer or softball. I don’t follow the NBA, NFL or MLB. I do remember reading about Tim Tebow, though. He was the quarterback who knelt in prayer before games. As the average age in the NFL is 26, it won’t surprise you that 30-something Tebow isn’t playing football anymore. It might surprise you to hear he’s playing baseball. He’s an outfielder with the Rumble Ponies in Binghamton, New York. While he isn’t exactly having a banner year, he’s definitely packing the seats.

Nine Woven Stars

We’d like to save the planet, but when it comes to individual species, some matter more to us than others. You care that polar bears are having a tough time, or that elephants might not like living in captivity. But with smaller less charming creatures, it can be hard to muster a little sympathy. June suckers aren’t big, and they’re not pretty. They’re homely little fish that have lived here a lot longer than humans have. Utah Lake used to be full of them. They were an important food source for native Americans, and when the Mormon pioneers settled here, they used them to pay their tithing. In the 1980’s they nearly went extinct, but thanks to a decades-long recovery project, there are an estimated 3000 June suckers swimming around. Why should you care? Because homely or not, they’re an important link in the food chain. Restoring the way an ecosystem works is something we can all applaud.

London Block

This year the theme for the block-of-the-month class at Quilt Etc. is Dream Vacations. Once a month we get together, learn to make two new quilt blocks, and discuss amazing places we’ve visited (or hope to someday) like Hawaii, New Zealand, Italy and Japan. Many of these travel destinations already have blocks named for them, but instead of using these they chose other traditional quilt blocks and simply renamed them for the class. I’ve posted the blocks (18 so far) here as I’ve made them. I’ve been able to find and attach the original block names for each one, until now. As I’ve been unable to discover its real name, this one will just have to be called London. As it was being assembled, I kept thinking of other blocks I wished I was making – London Roads, London Stairs, or London Square – every one of which would have been easier to accomplish than this one!

Nine Betty Blocks

“My life has taught me three things that changed my mind about Mother’s Day:

My skills are never wasted. My heart—not my present circumstances—determines my blessings. I am a mother because I behave as a mother. To all the women who are uncomfortable on Mother’s Day, I would say: ‘Don’t let sadness obscure the view. Your covenants have already paved your path. Keep going. You are doing better than you know.’ What might the Lord say to us? I think He would throw His arms around us and let us know we are worthy enough to keep going and our sacrifices have been acceptable before Him. He would tell us He is reserving for us all that is in our hearts, unspoken things that only He could know. He would say that He sees us and all we do behind the scenes, that we are not invisible to Him.” – Sharon Eubank

Four Cobweb Blocks

It’s hard to picture Queen Elizabeth without a dog at her heels. She has owned dozens of Pembroke Welsh Corgis, Spaniels and dorgis (dachshund/Corgi crossbreeds) in the 66 years she’s been queen. As you might imagine, the royal dogs lead a charmed life. They have their own designated room in Windsor Castle. They sleep in elevated baskets to avoid drafts (I suppose you might expect a home that’s been standing since William the Conqueror to be drafty). Their meals are prepared by a gourmet chef, and the Queen herself selects the contents of their Christmas stockings. When they pass on, the dogs are interred in a special cemetery at the royal residence. Three years ago the British monarch stopped breeding Corgis fearing she might trip over and injure them or herself. She was also concerned about leaving dogs to mourn her when she passes. The last of her beloved purebred Corgis died in April.

Four Bouncing Bettys

Ken Jeong is an American actor and comic of South Korean descent. You might recognize him from the TV sitcom Community, the Hangover movie trilogy, or the series Dr. Ken (which he also wrote and produced). Neither of these is really my cup of tea, but I am familiar with his voice work in cartoons like Despicable Me 1 and 2, Turbo and Penguins of Madagascar. I’ve always found him very funny, but what I didn’t know – until last week – is he’s also a licensed physician. Ken was doing a stand-up routine in Phoenix when a woman in the audience suffered a seizure. The comic didn’t hesitate to stop his show and clear the area. He and another audience member (who happens to be an EMT) stayed by her side until paramedics arrived. Then Ken hopped right back on stage. Laughter may be the best medicine, but when you need something more, it’s nice to know there’s a doctor in the house.

Cobweb Block

Thirteen-year-old Trenton McKinley was playing at a friend’s house in March when it happened. He was riding in a trailer being pulled by a dune buggy. The trailer flipped and threw the Mobile Alabama teen to the ground headfirst. After several surgeries he was still unresponsive. Doctors told his family Trenton wouldn’t recover. “I could sign a paper to donate his organs to save five other kids and they would keep hitting him with adrenaline til Monday, so I signed it. I knew he would not hesitate to save five more lives,” his mother said. “The next day I got a call. Right before they hooked him up his hand moved.” Trenton’s progress over the next few weeks has astonished everyone. Today he’s walking, talking, reading and doing math. He still has a long recovery ahead, but he calls his return from the brink of death a miracle. As he puts it, “There’s no other explanation but God.”

Nine Green Susannas

I played the word “epizoon” in Words With Friends last week. It was the first time I’ve done that, and probably the last. Before you get excited, it was only worth 44 points. That’s better than my average, but for a seven-letter word with a Z, it's pretty pathetic. The cool thing about this word is I had only just learned it the day before. An epizoon is an animal that lives off the body of another animal: a parasite. I’d just been reading an article about the death of the world’s oldest spider. Number 16 was a 43-year-old trapdoor spider living in the Australian outback. She was part of a study aimed at discovering the secrets of longevity. She was last seen alive in October 2016 when scientists checking on her discovered she’d been attacked by a parasitic wasp. Apparently, for trapdoor spiders at least, the secret to long life is to avoid wasps.  

Bouncing Betty

Garlic Chicken Primavera

4 tablespoons olive oil

6 cloves minced garlic

4 chicken breasts, thinly sliced

4 cups chopped fresh asparagus

2 cups cherry tomatos, halved

2 cups thinly sliced carrots

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 teaspoons coarse sea salt

8 cups cooked and drained penne

2 cups grated Parmesan

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook garlic and chicken until no pink is showing. Add vegetables, salt, and pepper, and cook for about 2 minutes. Add pasta and Parmesan, stirring until cheese is melted and evenly distributed. Serve immediately. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Four Green Susannas

“Does God really want to speak to you? Yes! As well might man stretch forth his puny arm to stop the Missouri river in its decreed course as to hinder the Almighty from pouring down knowledge from heaven upon the heads of the Latter-day Saints. You don’t have to wonder about what is true. You do not have to wonder whom you can safely trust. Through personal revelation, you can receive your own witness that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, that Joseph Smith is a prophet, and that this is the Lord’s Church. Regardless of what others may say or do, no one can ever take away a witness borne to your heart and mind about what is true.” – President Russell M. Nelson

Four Woven Stars

During Napoleon’s reign a nine-arch pedestrian bridge was built over the Seine – the first metal bridge in Paris. Pont des Arts (Bridge of the Arts) was initially meant to resemble a suspended garden with trees, benches and masses of flowers. It was damaged by aerial bombardments during both World Wars. While I was in high school it collapsed after being hit by a barge. The bridge was rebuilt in 1981 with seven arches instead of nine (presumably to allow barges to pass without hitting it). In 2008 tourists began attaching “love locks” to the metal railings and grates; locking them onto the structure and tossing the keys into the Seine as a token of their commitment. When the gratings filled, locks were placed on other locks. By 2012 their added weight was estimated to be 45 tons. The mayor launched a “love without locks” campaign, which was largely ignored. Two years later, amid safety concerns, the grates were replaced with Plexiglass.

Green Susanna

Stephen Foster (1826 – 1864) is called “the father of American music.” Much of what he wrote is mistaken for American folk songs, including “Camptown Races,” “Swanee River,” “Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair,” “My Old Kentucky Home,” “Beautiful Dreamer” and “Oh Susanna.” You may have heard a statue honoring Stephen Foster was recently removed from a Pittsburgh park because it contained “racial imagery.” The statue shows a well-dressed man, seated and writing as a barefoot, bearded and man seated slightly lower than himself plays a banjo. When it was erected 118 years ago, it wasn’t designed to give offense, but plenty of people are offended now. Was Foster a racist? By today’s standards, maybe. Though they were northerners, his parents weren’t abolitionists. But Foster was the first white American to call a black woman a lady in his ballad “Nelly Was a Lady.” And “Uncle Ned,” the song this statue depicted, was probably America’s first anti-slavery anthem.

4.5" Woven Star

I discovered Keepsake Quilting while we were living in Yorkshire. There weren’t many quilt shops within driving distance, and KQ was willing to ship to an APO. In March they held an online drawing: identify the actor, movie and quilt pattern in their photo for a chance to win a “spring-themed collection of goodies.” I recognized Johnny Depp from Sleepy Hollow and knew the quilt he was hiding behind was called “Thousand Pyramids.” So I entered. No one could have been more surprised than I was to find I’d won. A fortnight later a huge package arrived. Inside were several pretty fat quarters, pairs of scissors, a lovely thimble, some quilt books, and various quilter’s notions. The nicest prize was a Steady Betty ironing pad; “a unique, high quality pressing surface that holds fabric for a perfect press.” I’ve used it nearly every day since it came. I don’t know how I’ve managed without one for so long.

Stars Fell on Alabama

An unusually active Leonid meteor shower November 12 and 13, 1833 bombarded Earth’s atmosphere with more than 30,000 meteors PER HOUR above Alabama and neighboring states. Those who witnessed the display said it was as if the sky was filled with fireworks. Native Americans saw the meteors as a good sign, but nearly everyone else was convinced they were seeing the end of the world. The event left a powerful impression on the collective consciousness for generations to come. In 1934 Frank Perkins and Mitchell Parrish wrote the jazz standard “Stars Fell on Alabama” which was later recorded by Guy Lombardo and his orchestra. If you know your way around YouTube, you can find covers by Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, Jimmy Buffet, Billie Holiday, Dean Martin, Doris Day, Frank Sinatra, Kate Smith, Ricky Martin, Mel Torme, and Harry Connick, Jr. You may not be familiar with the title, but I guarantee you’ve heard the song.

Sentimental Journey

Les Brown and Ben Homer co-wrote the tune to Sentimental Journey and the lyrics were written by Bud Green. Les and his “Band of Renown” had been performing the number for some time, but were unable to record it because of the 1942-1944 musician’s strike. When the strike finally ended they recorded with Doris Day as the vocalist, and it became her first big hit. The lyrics describe the mounting excitement we all feel when we’re heading home after a long separation: “Got my bag, got my reservation, spent each dime I could afford. Like a child in wild anticipation, long to hear that ‘All aboard.’” Because the record’s release coincided with the end of World War II, it became the unofficial theme song for millions of returning war vets. It’s further proof (if we ever actually needed any) that timing really is everything.