Thirty Side Steps

 

“Righteous women have changed the course of history and will continue to do so, and their influence will spread and grow exponentially.” – Julie B. Beck

“We need more of the distinctive, influential voices and faith of women. We need them to learn the doctrine and to understand what we believe so that they can bear their testimonies about the truth of all things.” – M. Russell Ballard

“Oh, how we need each other. Those of us who are old need you who are young. And hopefully, you who are young need some of us who are old. It is a sociological fact that women need women. We need deep and satisfying and loyal friendships with each other.” – Marjorie Pay Hinckley

“Throw away the mirrors and look through the window.” – Cheryl A. Esplin

“You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” – President Brigham Young

Kissing Geese

 

Wild geese can live up to fifteen years, though they’re more likely to live longer in protected areas. As far as we know, geese mate for life. (I should note we used to believe that about penguins, until someone started DNA testing their chicks.) When flying long distances, geese adopt a V-formation to reduce drag, conserve energy, and increase their flying range. The collective noun for geese is gaggle, but only while they’re on the ground. When they’re flying together, a group of geese is called a wedge or a skein. I don't know the collective noun for swimming geese. Maybe a flotilla? Geese are primarily herbivores, but they’ve been known to eat insects and small fish. If you’d like to feed the wild geese in your neighborhood, skip the bread. It’s not healthy for them, and can attract vermin. Instead, try offering them cracked corn, leafy greens like lettuce, kale, or chard, or chopped vegetables like carrots, peas or green beans.

Twenty-Five Side Steps

I love my gas range. I really do. But it may not be the healthiest choice, especially for people with asthma and other respiratory issues. This lovely and efficient appliance is probably adding to the nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and benzene inside our home. So, we crack open windows from time to time. And whenever we can, we use the microwave, electric kettle, egg steamer, and the outdoor grill. And we use the slow cooker a LOT. Tonight, we're having this:

 

Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff

 

1 pound cubed beef

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed golden mushroom soup

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

4 ounces cream cheese

 

Put all ingredients in slow cooker; cover and cook on low six hours. Stir and serve over hot egg noodles, topped with a dollop of sour cream.

 

Twirl

 

Over the years, treatment for jaundice included blood-letting, laxatives, and enemas. If a patient recovered, it was often in spite of the treatment rather than because of it. During the 1950’s, Sister Jean Ward was head nurse of the premature nursery at Rochford General Hospital in Essex. She believed fresh air and sunshine were better for babies than stuffy hospital rooms. On warm sunny days, she’d wheel the babies in her charge – cribs and all – outside into the hospital courtyard. She began to observe the babies' jaundice improved after being in sunlight; specifically, the exposed skin was less yellow than skin under clothing or blankets. She showed her discovery to doctors, who were less than impressed. They continued to promote the accepted treatment – exchange blood transfusion, despite the obvious risks. It took decades, but the medical world finally came around. In 1982, our baby boy recovered on a blanket in the garden instead of a hospital ward.

Crazy Ann

 

January 8 2015, a wave swept 22-year-old American tourist Frank Jade from the deck of Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas. Somehow, none of the 6,360 passengers and 2,394 crew members saw him fall or noticed his absence. Cruise ships should have detection systems in place for this event, but the Oasis of the Seas did not. (Royal Caribbean was later censured for violating the 2010 Cruise Vessel Safety/Security Act.) Frank could only watch helplessly as his ship sailed away without him. Miraculously, Frank was spotted by passengers aboard the appropriately named Disney Magic. Tom Parsons, a vacationing fire chief from Ithaca, threw him life preservers. The Magic lowered a rescue boat to retrieve him. The cruise ship made an unscheduled stop in Mexico so Frank could receive medical attention. I don’t suppose many people can say they started a voyage on one of the cheapest cruise lines and ended it on one of the most expensive.

Three Dozen Diversions

“President Nelson has repeatedly pled with us to make time for the Lord in our lives every day. He reminds us quiet time is sacred time—time which facilitates personal revelation and instills peace. To hear the still voice of the Lord, you too must be still. Being still requires more than just making time. It requires letting go of doubtful and fearful thoughts and focusing our hearts and minds on Him. Elder David A. Bednar taught, ‘The Lord’s admonition to be still entails much more than simply not talking or not moving.’ To be still, he suggested, ‘may be a way to focus upon the Savior unfailingly.’ Being still is an act of faith and requires effort. President Nelson declared: ‘Our focus must be riveted on the Savior and His gospel. It is mentally rigorous to strive to look unto Him in every thought. When we do, our doubts and fears flee.’” – Bishop L. Todd Budge

Two Dozen Side Steps

 

Its scientific name is amorphophallus titanum, which means, “misshapen giant.” In its native Indonesia, it’s called bunga bangkai. Much of the world calls it a corpse flower, primarily because of the way it smells. It has a complex aroma, with notes of garlic, moldy cheese, sweaty gym socks, decaying fish and boiled cabbage. But mostly, it smells like rotting flesh. The 6- to 8-foot flower generates heat, which helps spread the odor. On a good night, you can smell it half a mile away. The purpose of the stink is to attract pollinators like flies and carrion beetles. The corpse flower blooms for a day or two every seven to fifteen years. Their population is declining in the wild, but when one blossoms in a botanical garden, it attracts tens of thousands of curious human visitors. They’re notoriously difficult to propagate, but if you’d like to give it a try, there are seeds for sale on Amazon.

Fifty-Six Delectable Mountains

 

Slow Cooker Winter Vegetable Soup

 

1 large onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

3 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 cans (14.5 ounces each) fire roasted tomatoes

1 (12 ounce) bag frozen mixed vegetables

2 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning

8 cups vegetable stock (I used chicken stock, because it’s what I had.)

1 cup uncooked ditalini pasta

 

Dump all ingredients except pasta into slow cooker. Cover and cook on low about six hours. Half an hour before dinner, add pasta, cover and continue cooking. Remove and discard bay leaves. Serve with croutons and grated parmesan. 

Twenty Side Steps

 

I noticed on the calendar our neighborhood’s doing a food drive in a few weeks. I’m ashamed to admit most of the time, these events take me by surprise. I dash to my pantry and grab a few things I’m unlikely to need in the immediate future. But it occurs to me the foods I have little use for are probably not in higher demand at a food bank. Since I have some time to plan, I can stock up on things that will really do some good:

Peanut butter and other nut spreads

Canned tuna, chicken or salmon

Canned beans like garbanzos, black-eyed peas, and pintos

Dried pasta and canned pasta sauce

Canned soup, vegetables or fruit

Pantry staples like oil, salt, flour or sugar

While I’m on the subject, there are some things you should NEVER donate to a food bank:

Food in glass containers, as they’re easily broken

Food that’s been opened

Food that has expired

Roses Among the Thorns

 

The container ship Ever Laurel left Hong Kong the winter of 1991/1992 on its way to Tacoma, Washington. On January 10, a storm near the international date line washed a dozen 40-foot shipping containers overboard. One of these containers held 29,000 Friendly Floatees bath toys. Because of a collision with the other containers or perhaps with the Ever Laurel itself, it broke open and released its floating cargo. Many of the toys were small yellow rubber ducks, but there were also red beavers, blue turtles, and green frogs. Months later, these tiny travelers began washing up on Alaska’s shores, over 3,270 kilometers (2,030 miles) from where they were lost. Oceanographers tracked the toys’ movements, using them as floating markers to study ocean currents and how objects disperse at sea. Some of these adventurous little toys floated astonishing distances, with reports of them reaching European beaches years later, providing valuable insights into oceanic flow patterns. 

Antique Basket

 

Martin Swaden, a lawyer from Mendota Heights, MN was concerned because his daughter Sydney had failed the math portion of the Minnesota Basic Standards Tests. Sydney was a sophomore who found math difficult; she’d failed this test before. This time, she’d failed by a single answer. Thinking he could help his daughter focus her studies, Martin asked to see his daughter’s test papers. State education officials denied his request and told him simply to have his daughter study harder for next year’s exam. After Martin threatened to sue, he was finally allowed to see the questions and Sydney’s answers. Question #41 showed a rail fence and asked which parts were parallel. Sydney chose two horizontal rails, but was marked wrong. Martin discovered six of the 68 questions in the test were scored wrong – not just for his daughter. Math scores for 45,739 students were incorrect. 7,935 students were told they’d failed when they’d actually passed.

Thirty Diversions

 

“A journalist once questioned Mother Teresa of Calcutta about her hopeless task of rescuing the destitute in that city. He said that, statistically speaking, she was accomplishing absolutely nothing. This remarkable little woman shot back that her work was about love, not statistics. Notwithstanding the staggering number beyond her reach, she said she could keep the commandment to love God and her neighbor by serving those within her reach with whatever resources she had. ‘What we do is nothing but a drop in the ocean,’ she would say on another occasion. ‘But if we didn’t do it, the ocean would be one drop less than it is.’ Soberly, the journalist concluded that Christianity is obviously not a statistical endeavor. He reasoned that if there would be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over the ninety and nine who need no repentance, then apparently God is not overly preoccupied with percentages.” - Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

Sixteen Side Steps

 

A few of my favorite one-liners:

"I don’t need glasses, but I’ve reached the age where curiosity is greater than vanity.” – Red Skelton

"The most effective way to remember your wife’s birthday is to forget it once.” – George Burns

"Housework won’t kill you, but why take the chance?" – Phyllis Diller

"If God had intended man to fly, He’d have made it easier to get to the airport." – Jonathan Winters

"I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." – Groucho Marx

"My wife and I were happy for twenty years. Then we met." – Milton Berle

"The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept." – George Carlin

"The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age." – Lucille Ball

"A day without sunshine is like, you know, night." – Steve Martin

"Why do they call it rush hour when nothing moves?" – Robin Williams

Forty-Nine Delectable Mountains

 

American swimmer Mark Spitz became a legend after his performance at the 1972 Olympic games in Munich. But much of the media attention was focused on his facial hair. Mark had broken multiple world records at the 1972 US Olympic swim trials earlier in the year. He’d planned to shave his mustache before the Olympics started. (Swimmers often shave their entire bodies to reduce friction in the water. In the 70’s, many shaved their heads as well.) But during Mark’s last training session, a coach for the Russian swim team approached him and asked, “Doesn’t your mustache slow you down?” As a joke, Mark replied that his whiskers deflected water from his mouth and actually helped him swim faster. To keep the joke going, he left the mustache where it was. He went on to win seven gold medals at the Munich games. At the 1976 games in Montreal, the entire Russian swim team showed up with mustaches. 

Thirteen Side Steps

 

He’s been in office a month, and he’s been busy. I haven’t approved of his executive orders so far. None, as far as I can see, bear any resemblance to his campaign promises. Most seem to be about punishing people he doesn’t like, or people he thinks don’t like him. But last week I read about an executive order I can stand behind: an order to stop minting new pennies. There’s not a single thing you can buy for a penny, and there hasn’t been for a long, long time. Fewer people use cash to purchase items. Even if that weren’t the case, retailers could easily set their prices so they’d never need to make change in pennies. Moreover, it cost 3.69 cents for each penny we minted and distributed last year, making each coin a loss of 2.69 cents. If only he hadn’t written, “I’ve instructed MY Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”

Around the Corner

 

A group of guys, all turning forty, discussed where they should go to celebrate. They decided on Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the waitresses there were well-endowed and wore very short skirts. A decade later, when their fiftieth birthdays approached, they went to lunch at Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the food and service there were excellent, and it was a good value for their money. Ten years later, as they were turning sixty, the friends decided to meet at Weatherby’s in Uxbridge, because there was plenty of parking, and they could dine in peace and quiet, with no loud music. In another ten years, the friends chose to celebrate their seventieth birthdays at Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the restaurant was wheelchair accessible and had a nice disabled toilet. Ten years later, at age eighty, they considered where they should go for lunch. They settled on Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because they’d never been there before.

Little Fish

Our local aquarium is too small for ocean sunfish, but I’ve seen these remarkable creatures up close. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has sunfish in their Open Sea Exhibit. At 4,400 pounds, they’re the world’s largest bony fish, and they’re like enormous fish heads, floating aloof and disinterested in their watery world. At least, that’s how they look. When Japan’s Kaikyokan Aquarium temporarily closed for renovations, their solitary sunfish began to show signs of distress. It stopped eating, became lethargic, and started bumping into the tank walls. The caretakers worried it might be missing the aquarium visitors, so they came up with a creative solution. They placed life-size human cutouts outside the tank to simulate adoring crowds. Gradually, the sunfish began to improve. Its appetite returned, it became more active, and it stopped colliding with the walls of the tank. Evidently, even fish may experience certain sensory input patterns which are anticipated and even missed when absent.

Red, White and True Banner

 

“I testify that our sincere gospel questions can provide Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ with opportunities to help us grow. My personal effort to seek answers from the Lord to my own spiritual questions—past and present—has allowed me to use the space between the lines of my understanding and God’s to practice obedience to Him and fidelity to the spiritual knowledge that I currently possess. I testify that placing your trust in Heavenly Father and in His prophets, whom He has sent, will help you to spiritually elevate and push you forward toward God’s expanded horizon. Your vantage will change because you will change. God knows that the higher you are, the farther you can see. Our Savior invites you to make that climb.” – Tracy Y. Browning

One Dozen Side Steps

 

Words to Live By:

If it costs your peace, it’s too expensive.

You can do anything, but you can’t do everything.

The magic you’re looking for may be in the work you’re avoiding.

If someone could only see your actions and not hear your words, what would they say your priorities are?

People only see the decisions you made, not the choices you had.

It’s okay to live a life most people don’t understand.

You can’t have a new reality with an old mentality.

Those who don’t move won’t notice their chains.

If you want to make the wrong decision, ask everyone.

Ambition without action becomes anxiety.

Fear doesn’t stop death; it stops life.

To live a life most people don’t, you must be willing to do what most people won’t.

Ships are safe in the harbor, but that’s not what they’re built for.

No risk, no story.

Never take criticism from someone whose advice you'd ignore.

Be My Valentine Banner

 

“The best proof of love is trust.” – Joyce Brothers

“At the touch of love everyone becomes a poet.” – Plato

“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.” – Aristotle

“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.” – Audrey Hepburn

“Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

“Love is friendship that has caught fire.” – Ann Landers

“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” – Dr. Seuss

“Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” – William Shakespeare

“The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.” – Victor Hugo

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” – Charles Schulz

Nine Side Steps

 

My piano teacher used to ask, “How does a mouse eat an elephant?” The answer is, “One bite at a time.” He meant sometimes big tasks can feel overwhelming. If you divide them into smaller bits and accomplish one, it can give you momentum to tackle another. And another. Here are a few tasks requiring fifteen minutes or less:

 

Clean out your purse.

Make a shopping list.

Water your houseplants.

Strip and remake a bed.

Vacuum the living room.

Empty waste paper bins.

Clean a bathtub.

Dust light fixtures.

Start sauce for a pasta dinner.

Gather a bag of things to donate.

Scour the kitchen sink.

Scrub a toilet.

Polish the mirrors.

Fold a load of laundry.

Wipe down kitchen countertops.

Walk around the block.

Run an empty dishwasher with a cup of vinegar.

Empty the dishwasher.

Start a load of laundry.

Sweep the kitchen floor.

Purge the toybox of broken toys.

Clean out your car.

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood

 

Even if you zoom way in, you probably can’t read the Fred Rogers quotes in these little windows. Here are some:

 

“Often when you thing you’re at the end of something, you’re at the beginning of something else.”

“Anyone who does anything to help a child in his life is a hero.”

“You make each day a special day, by just being you.”

“How many times have you noticed that it’s the little quiet moments in the midst of life that seem to give the rest extra meaning?”

“Anything worthwhile certainly takes a while.”

“The connections we make in the course of a life – maybe that’s what heaven is.”

 

When this top is quilted and bound, it will be donated to Stitching Hearts Worldwide, to help “provide service opportunities for individuals, groups, and businesses wanting to help those suffering from natural disasters, human injustices, and unforeseen tragedies beyond their control.” I think Fred would approve.

Four Cactus Flowers

 

One of the things I wish we’d had time to see when we were in London is Highgate Cemetery. Highgate is a 37-acre nature preserve where 170,000 people are buried. The actress Jean Simmons is interred here, along with physicist Michael Faraday, novelist George Elliot, and author Douglas Adams. Perhaps the most visited tomb here is the resting place of Karl Marx. Marx’ radical ideas got him kicked out of Brussels Belgium, Paris France and Cologne (which was then part of Prussia). He was forced to live as a stateless exile in London for the rest of his life. His home was near Leicester Square and Chinatown. His tomb is five miles away, adorned by a large bronze bust. But Marx was buried on private property, which requires costly security and maintenance. So, if you want to see the grave of the man who believed everything should be free, be prepared to pay an entrance fee.

Diversions en Pointe

 

“I testify that you are not beneath the Master’s reach. The Savior descended below all things and is in a divine position to lift you and claim you from the darkest abyss and bring you into his marvelous light. Through His sufferings, He has made a way for each of us to overcome our personal weaknesses and sins. ‘He has all power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet for repentance.’ (Alma 12:15) Just as it required work and pleading for heaven’s help to repair the painting, it takes work, sincerity of heart, and humility to bring forth fruit meet for repentance. These fruits include exercising our faith and trust in Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice, offering to God a broken heart and a contrite spirit, confessing and forsaking sin, restoring that which has been damaged to the best of our ability, and striving to live righteously.” – Kristin M. Yee

Half a Dozen Side Steps

 

I’ve had this nightmare several times. I’m seated in a large orchestra, dressed in concert black. The conductor walks to the podium to thunderous applause. As the performance is about to begin, I notice the music on all the stands around me is different from what’s in front of me. That’s when I wake up in a cold sweat, relieved to find it was only a vivid dream. But it actually happened to at least one pianist. In 1999, Maria João Pires was asked on short notice to substitute for another pianist at an open rehearsal (before a live audience) of Mozart’s 23rd Piano Concerto in A Major. The music starts, and Maria is shocked to find the orchestra is playing Mozart’s 20th Concerto in D Minor. She face-palms. Should she stop the conductor? Storm off stage? But, as the introduction continues, Maria composes herself and, drawing from memory, flawlessly performs the 20th. My hero.

Forty-Two Delectable Mountains

 

I bought this fabric as a fat eighth bundle (9x22”) of prints celebrating fifty years of Moda quilting cottons. I thought of submitting a finished quilt for their 50 Years of Moda Challenge. I love a challenge, and the $2,500 first prize sounded nice. I’ve always wanted to do a Delectable Mountains quilt, and that’s what I imagined when I looked at these wildly diverse prints. But I came to the game a little late. Even if I’d shelved all my other projects, I couldn’t have beaten the March first deadline. Delectable Mountains calls for 1/2 dark and 1/2 light prints, and the bundle only had a handful of light colors. Moreover, the entire quilt top, back, and binding must be made with Moda fabrics. Most of these are, but one or two may be Riley Blake or Maywood Studios. So, I’m making this to please myself. So far, it's doing great!

Four Side Steps

 

Rather than selling Bob’s Red Mill to a large corporation, Bob Moore transferred full ownership to his 700 employees. He founded the company at age 49 and passed away at 94 last February. In 2010, Bob established an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), giving employees collective ownership of the business. He made the announcement on his eighty-first birthday, emphasizing the importance of sharing the company’s success with those who contributed to its growth. The ESOP protects the company’s values and mission from potential takeovers. Bob’s decision to keep the company independent reflected his commitment to long-term success and his employees’ well-being. This not only ensured financial security for the workforce but also strengthened the sense of ownership and community within the company. Bob’s legacy lives on through the employee-owned business, which continues its focus on producing wholesome, natural foods. Several of these, like chia seeds, stone-ground cornmeal, and powdered milk are in my pantry right now.

Four Yellow Houses

 

Directly across Disneyland’s Main Street, USA from the Candy Kitchen, there is a blue-and-white "building" (it's really a facade) with a front porch and lots of Victorian gingerbread. You can climb three steps to the porch and sit in the shade (unless someone got there before you), but you can’t walk through the door. When Disneyland opened in 1955, this was the Intimate Apparel Shop, where a recorded Wonderful Wizard of Bras on a revolving stage taught visitors about the history of ladies’ undergarments. You could also buy unmentionables there, and admire a Singer sewing machine from the 1860’s. Today, the door on the porch is sealed shut and the space behind it is part of the China Closet. The Intimate Apparel Shop lasted only six months, for reasons you’ve probably already guessed. But it really would have come in handy that one time when a Disneyland ride shoulder strap snapped the underwire in my bra.

Lady of the Lake

 

The first London bridge was built by the Romans in 43 A.D. They needed a way to cross the Thames and connect the capital city of Londinium with the rest of Roman Britain. Theirs was a pontoon bridge, made of planks laid across anchored boats. That bridge was rebuilt by Anglo-Saxons, and then again by Henry II, as part of his penance for the assassination of Thomas Becket. Houses and shops were built on the bridge – at one point up to five stories tall – with any rents contributing to the bridge’s upkeep. The old London bridge was the only crossing point of the River Thames until 1729. Amazingly, the bridge survived the Great Fire of London in 1666 because a previous fire had destroyed some of the buildings atop the bridge, leaving a fire break. In 1968, an American tycoon bought the London Bridge – all 10,000 tons of it – and had it rebuilt stone by stone in Lake Havasu, Arizona. 

Twenty-Five Diversions

 

“Priesthood ordinances and covenant promises allow God’s power to flow into your life with greater efficacy, working in and through you, empowering and equipping you to reach your full purpose and potential. Carefully study and ponder the Aaronic and the Melchizedek Priesthood ordinances, the covenant promises we make with each, and the power of God we access through those ordinances. Remember, it’s not only who officiates in the ordinance that matters; what the ordinance and your covenant promise unlock also deserves the focus of your attention. Partaking of the bread and water is a weekly reminder of His power working in you to help you overcome. Wearing the garment of the holy priesthood is a daily reminder of the gift of His power working in you to help you become. We all have access to the gift of God’s power. Every time we partake of the sacrament. Every time we cross the threshold of a temple.” – Emily Belle Freeman

Side Step Block

 

When I was a little girl, I had a granduncle who always carried Tootsie Rolls in his pocket. For me. You don’t forget a thing like that, no matter how many years fly by. It’s difficult to describe Tootsie Rolls to someone who’s never had one. Chocolate-flavored, they’re not chocolates. They’re sort of like caramels, but not quite. They’re almost like taffy, but not really.  Leo Hirschfield patented the technique for making this unique candy in 1907. He named it after his daughter, Clara, who was nicknamed “Tootsie.” Tootsie Rolls were marketed commercially in 1908, making them the first American penny candy to be individually wrapped. According to the company website, the original recipe called for the inclusion of some of the previous day's batch, "a graining process that Tootsie continues to this day." If that’s true, then it’s possible the Tootsie Roll you buy today could have molecules from the very first batch. 

Three Dozen Delectable Mountains

 

To hear our tour guide tell it, Peter the Great was a visionary. He foresaw St. Petersburg as a destination for tourists, a “Venice of the North,” and a jewel to rival the many western capitals he’d visited. So, Peter built his palace there – she never mentioned he had to steal the land from Sweden first – and he began digging canals all over the place. I don’t think she bothered to tell us canals make much more sense in southern Italy than in places that are well below freezing several months of the year. But I suspect her dialog was as carefully restricted as the rest of our visit. Another thing the guide didn’t mention was the wildly unpopular taxation the Tsar enforced to make Petrograd happen. One of these was a tax on beards, along with forcibly shaving – in public – anyone who refused to pay. Maybe the visionary foresaw lots of Russians with clean-shaven faces.

Bloom & Grow

 

Valentine’s Day is fifteen days away. There’s still plenty of time to make a nice dinner reservation, or to pick up some lovely flowers or a box of chocolates. With a little creativity and some craft supplies, you could make a Valentine’s Day card that’s both unique and personal. But if that’s not exactly what you have in mind, there are other choices out there. For instance, the SPCA in Adams County, Pennsylvania has an interesting suggestion. For a donation of twenty-five dollars or more, they’ll name a feral cat after the ex-partner of your choice. And then, once the cat has a proper name, it will be neutered and released as part of their TNR (trap-neuter-return) program. At the end of every surgery day, Tuesday through Thursday until Feb. 14, the shelter will list the first names of the "exes" who got neutered that day. To submit your name and donation, go to www.adamscountyspca.org.

Four Red Houses

 

One of the casualties of this month’s California wildfires was the 31-room mansion that once belonged to Will Rogers (1879-1935). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the mansion and the surrounding ranch have been a state park since 1944. If you have no idea who Will Rogers was, these quotes should give you a clue:

“When I die, I want to die like my grandfather who died peacefully in his sleep. Not screaming like all the passengers in his car.”

“I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.”

“I know worrying works, because none of the stuff I worried about ever happened.”

“Last year we said, ‘Things can’t go on like this,’ and they didn’t. They got worse”

“There are three kinds of men: the one that learns by reading, the few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.”

Eight Barrel Cactus

 

Sharon Christa Corrigan was born in 1948. Her father was a college sophomore when she was born, and her mother became a substitute teacher. They planned to call her Sherrie, but decided her middle name suited her better. In fact, she didn’t know Christa wasn’t her first name until she was practically an adult. Christa married her high school sweetheart in 1970, and they had two children together. Christa taught American history, civics, and English in high school and middle school. In 1984, President Reagan announced the Teacher in Space program, and Christa applied. On her application, she wrote, “I watched the Space Age being born, and I’d like to participate.” The following year, Christa was selected from more than 11,000 applicants to become the first teacher in space. January 28, 1986, Christa McAuliffe was one of seven crew members lost when the Challenger broke apart. In 2004, she was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

Two Dozen Diversions

 

“I urge you to devote time each week—for the rest of your life—to increase your understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. My heart aches for those who are mired in sin and don’t know how to get out. I weep for those who struggle spiritually or who carry heavy burdens alone because they do not understand what Jesus Christ did for them. Jesus Christ took upon Himself your sins, your pains, your heartaches, and your infirmities. You do not have to bear them alone! He will forgive you as you repent. He will bless you with what you need. He will heal your wounded soul. As you yoke yourself to Him, your burdens will feel lighter. If you will make and keep covenants to follow Jesus Christ, you will find that the painful moments of your life are temporary. Your afflictions will be swallowed up in the joy of Christ.” – President Russell M. Nelson

Lucky in Love

 

This is the last of the twelve 2024 Riley Blake door banners. I made ten of these wall hanging quilts exactly as their patterns directed. But the first and last (April and March) just didn’t suit me. So, I designed my own. For April, I re-drafted the blocks from The Buggy Barn’s Bunny Trail quilt (2005) so they’d each measure 10x12” instead of 11x14”. I used the prints from the April kit, and I’m very happy with the results. March was a bit more complicated. The original design had eight flowers, six stars and five diamond shapes, all in gold, grey and greens. I knew I wanted to replace them with Irish chain blocks, but there are so many different ones, with different dimensions. It took me a while, but I finally settled on simple 6” four-patch chain blocks using the kit’s solids, with seven intermittent sawtooth stars using the prints. The hearts inside the stars were just a lucky whim. 

Thirty Delectable Mountains

 

One of my husband’s favorite movies is Idiocracy (2006). I’ve never seen it. I probably don’t have to, as he’s so fond of quoting it. From what I can tell, it’s a dystopian sci-fi comedy about a librarian who’s put into suspended animation for 500 years. He wakes up in a world where for generations, only stupid people procreated. I read somewhere that the producers asked the movie’s costume designers to find “futuristic, but goofy-looking” footwear for the cast to wear during filming. They found a small, obscure company in Colorado that made soft clogs out of polyethylene vinyl acetate foam. The costume designers decided “nobody in their right mind” would ever wear these ugly shoes, so they’d be perfect for the movie. At some point, they were asked what would happen if these odd shoes ever took off, and they doubled down, saying there’s no way anyone would seriously buy these. The shoes in question were Crocs.  

Six Heart Stars

 

Randy Vitales is a sixteen-year-old sophomore at Dover High School in Oklahoma. Last Thursday, Randy’s high school basketball team had a tournament at Mulhall-Orlando High School, a forty-minute drive from Dover. About three minutes into the game, Randy went into full cardiac arrest on the court. Eighteen-year-old Magnus Miller, a player on the opposing team from Life Christian Academy, talks about what happened: “He just went to lay up, and I was getting the ball, about to dribble up the court, and I turn around, and he’s on the ground.” Magnus is trained as a lifeguard, so he stepped up. “I didn’t have any second thoughts about it. I just jumped in and took control.” He used a defibrillator and helped the coaches with CPR until the Guthrie Fire Department arrived. The first responders called Magnus a rock star and a guardian angel, and said “without a shadow of a doubt,” he saved Randy’s life.

Four Blue Houses

 

In 1907, Canadian P. L. Robertson invented a screw that could be die-stamped and used a square hole tapering to a point. The screw and its driver were called the Robertson. In 1913, Fischer Auto Body opened a factory in Ontario making parts for the Model T. Mr. Robertson’s screw offered an advantage for manufacturing and Fischer became one of Robertson’s biggest customers, using some 700 screws per car body. When he learned using Robertson’s screws in Canada saved $2.60 per car, Henry Ford came seeking a license to use the screws in all his US plants. But Ford wanted a say in production and an exclusive contract. Robertson stubbornly refused. When the deal fell through, Robertson also lost the Ford contracts in Canada; almost a third of his business. The Robertson is still used in Canada, but the US (and the rest of the world) chose instead the screwdriver patented by Henry F. Phillips. 

Four Aloe Veras

 

Cleveland isn’t one of the faces on Mount Rushmore. He’s not a president you learned about in grade school. The only reason I know anything about him is because I’m such a huge Disney fan I know the obscure films nobody else remembers, like The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band. The movie is about a politically divided family in 1888: the year Cleveland won the popular vote for reelection, but lost the electoral college and the presidency to Harrison. Four years later, Cleveland ran again and won, becoming the only US president to serve two non-consecutive terms. Until now. Everyone loves a good comeback story, right? But this one didn’t have a happy ending. The plump, balding president was faced with circumstances he didn’t expect and handled badly. His second term was such a disaster, it hurt his party for years. You know what they say, right? Learn from the past, or repeat it.

Twenty Diversions

 

“As we do our best to teach those we love about the doctrine of Jesus Christ, some may still not respond. Doubts may creep into your mind. You might question whether you know the Savior’s doctrine well enough to teach it effectively. If you’ve already made attempts to teach it, you may wonder why the positive effects aren’t more visible. Don’t give in to those doubts. Turn to God for help. If you pray, if you talk to God, and if you plead for His help for your loved one, and if you thank Him not only for help but for the patience and gentleness that come from not receiving all you desire right away or perhaps ever, I promise you will draw closer to Him. You will become diligent and long-suffering. You can know you have done all you can to help those you love and those you pray for navigate through Satan’s attempt to derail them.” – President Henry B. Eyring

Eight Double Irish Chains

 

When we moved to England, I set up our renter’s insurance via a phone call. One of the questions our agent asked was, “What is your home’s construction material? Stone, or brick?” Those were the only choices. Like most of Europe, the UK builds homes with brick or stone. Our Yorkshire house was quieter than any we’ve experienced in the US, as well as warmer in winter and cooler in summer. Here, we build with wood because it’s cheap. But as I watch the news from the wildfires in California, I wonder if it isn’t time to consider concrete instead. The wood frame home we built three decades ago took six months, start to finish. A concrete house can be move-in ready in days. It can cost less than wood, and can be built to withstand earthquakes. Best of all, concrete homes are fireproof. And, like the stone and brick homes in Europe, they’re far quieter and more energy-efficient.

Twenty-Five Delectable Mountains

 

Shizo Kanakuri was born in Japan in 1891. His family lived on the island of Kyushu. Every day, Shizo would run nearly four miles to school and back. When he was twenty, Shizo set a marathon world record during the domestic trials for the 1912 Olympics. He was one of two Japanese athletes invited to compete in Stockholm. The journey to Sweden took an exhausting eighteen days. The Olympics were held during a record heat wave, and the sun never set during the entire event. Shizo had trouble digesting the local food. Several competitors dropped out with hyperthermia. Dazed and sick, Shizo left the race after sixteen miles. Embarrassed, he quietly returned home without notifying officials. In 1967, he was invited back to complete the race, finishing with a time of fifty-four years, eight months, six days, five hours, thirty-two minutes and 20.3 seconds. Shizo Kanakuri holds the Guiness World Record for the longest time to complete a marathon.

Four Heart Stars

 

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted." – Aesop

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." – Mark Twain

"Shall we make a new rule of life from tonight: always to try to be a little kinder than is necessary?" – James M. Barrie

"Remember, there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." – Scott Adams

"A warm smile is the universal language of kindness." – William Arthur Ward

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle." – Plato

"Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind.” – Eric Hoffer

“Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.” – Princess Diana

Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.” – Maya Anjelou

Three Yellow Houses

 

I started college expecting to fill the general requirements, then settle into a vocal music major. I’d always received better marks in vocal performance than on keyboard. A week on campus changed my mind. All the vocal students I saw seemed paranoid and hypochondrial. They’d walk about with woolen scarves up to their chins. If anyone were to sneeze or cough in their presence, they’d hurry home to their humidifiers and their honey/lemon concoctions. So, I switched to piano pedagogy. Daddy used to say he had a similar epiphany at roughly the same point in his education. He’d been undecided about whether to focus on organic chemistry (which deals with carbon-hydrogen bonds) and inorganic chemistry (which involves mostly metals and minerals). He reached his decision when he learned about Adolf Butenandt, the chemistry student who discovered testosterone by boiling down thousands of gallons of male urine. Daddy knew right away he wanted nothing to do with that.

Three Prickly Pears

 

Robert (Bob) Wade was born in New Zealand in 1921. He taught himself to play chess by reading books from his local library. After winning the New Zealand Chess Championship in 1944, 1945 and 1948, Bob traveled to Europe to improve his game. International chess was starting up again after a hiatus during WWII. Bob earned the title of International Master in 1950. The following year, Bob decided to play chess against thirty Russian schoolboys – all of them fourteen and under – in a simultaneous play exhibition. Maybe he didn’t realize Russians have been obsessed with chess for ages, or that the Russian government had been funding chess training for decades. After seven hours of play, Bob drew ten games and lost twenty. He ended up setting a record for the worst simultaneous exhibition given by a master. The moral of this story: you may only be a big fish until you leave your little pond. 

Sixteen Diversions

 

“We need to avoid contention and be peacemakers in all our communications. This does not mean to compromise our principles and priorities but to cease harshly attacking others for theirs. In this conference four years ago, President Nelson gave us a prophetic challenge for our own day: ‘Are you willing to let God prevail in your life? Are you willing to let God be the most important influence in your life? Will you allow His words, His commandments, and His covenants to influence what you do each day? Will you allow His voice to take priority over any other?’ As followers of Christ, we teach and testify of Jesus Christ, our Perfect Role Model. So let us follow Him by forgoing contention. Let us qualify for His blessings by using the language and methods of peacemakers. In our families and other personal relationships, let us avoid what is harsh and hateful.” – President Dallin H. Oaks

Four Double Irish Chains

 

Margaret Eloise Knight was born in Maine in 1838. Young “Mattie,” as she was called by friends and family, was known for the clever kites and sleds she made. At twelve, she began working in a cotton mill. She had several jobs in her teens and twenties, including home repair, photography, ingraving and upholstery. In 1867, Mattie was hired by the Columbia Paper Bag company. The bags produced there were weak, narrow, and couldn’t stand on their bases. They were ill-suited for bulky or heavy items like groceries. Mattie invented a machine that cut, folded and glued the flat-bottomed grocery sack we use today. Charles Annan, a machinist who’d visited the shop where her machine was being built, tried to steal her invention and patent it first. When Mattie filed a patent interference lawsuit, Charles claimed “no woman could possibly understand the mechanical complexities of this machine.” Mattie responded with blueprints, journals, models and witnesses, resulting in victory.

Two Dozen Delectable Mountains

 

When we moved here, a friend from our old neighborhood gave me a going away gift: some chocolates and a nice card in a gift bag full of shredded paper. I was tossing the bag and shredded paper in a bin when I realized there was one more gift at the bottom. It was a 3-inch pot with a tiny succulent inside. I didn’t think it would live, but I watered it and stuck it in my new kitchen window. That was nearly a year and a half ago. Today, the plant is more than six inches tall, and it’s giving hints that it would like a bigger pot. It cheers me whenever I see it. Today is Houseplant Appreciation Day. This is the perfect time to pay more attention to the greenery inside your house. Christmas is well and truly over. Everything, inside and out, is looking slightly drab. Now’s the time to give your potted plants some extra TLC.