Bonnie Scotsman

“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion, to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly, to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart, to bear all cheerfully, to all bravely await occasions, hurry never. In a word, to let the spiritual unbidden and unconscious grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony.”

“Faith is the deep want of the soul. We have faculties for the spiritual, as truly as for the outward world. God, the foundation of all existence, may become to the mind the most real of all beings. The believer feels himself resting on an everlasting foundation.”

“Nothing can supply the place of books. They are cheering or soothing companions in solitude, illness, affliction. The wealth of both continents would not compensate for the good they impart.” - William Henry Channing

Scales

Lionfish originate from the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Sometime in the 1980’s, someone – possibly tropical fish hobbyists in Florida – released these beautiful fish into the western Atlantic. They found no natural predators, but they did find plenty to eat. Lionfish can swallow another fish up to half its own size. A single lionfish can eat dozens of other fish every day. A female lionfish lays up to 2 million eggs a year. Lionfish are a tasty dish for humans, but they live too deep for net fishing. It didn’t take long for this invasive species to start taking over. Enter Collin Angle. In addition to being a passionate diver, Collin is co-founder of the iRobot company, creators of the Roomba automated vacuum. Collin has a non-profit company called Robots for Environmental Services. RSE has produced Guardian: a 20-pound submersible robot that stuns and scoops up lionfish. I’m told you can become part of the solution in the seafood section at Whole Foods.

Red and Blue Bar

“Saints can be happy under every circumstance. We can feel joy even while having a bad day, a bad week, or even a bad year! My dear brothers and sisters, the joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives. When the focus of our lives is on God’s plan of salvation, which President Thomas S. Monson just taught us, and Jesus Christ and His gospel, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives. Joy comes from and because of Him. He is the source of all joy. We feel it at Christmastime when we sing, ‘Joy to the world, the Lord is come.’ And we can feel it all year round. For Latter-day Saints, Jesus Christ is joy!” – President Russell M. Nelson

Five Squares

I’ve been a blood/platelet donor for many years. I’ve never been paid for my contributions, unless you count juice boxes and Fig Newtons. (Once my donation earned me a gift certificate for an ice cream cone at Baskin Robbins. That was awesome.) I’m a donor because it costs me nothing (aside from a little time), and because I like feeling that I’ve made a difference to someone – a cancer patient, a premature infant, a burn victim, or maybe someone having surgery. But I know there’s always a chance my donation won’t be used at all. Whole blood can only be refrigerated for up to 42 days, and platelets must be used within five. So, I want to applaud Sweden for thinking outside the box: if you donate blood in, say, Stockholm, you’ll get a text message to let you know your donation has been used to help someone in need.

Chain and Bar

I don’t often work with flannel; I dislike the way it clogs my sewing machine. But I do like wearing flannel pajamas when it’s cold outside, and I’m thinking about making plaid flannel hand warmers. If you don’t have flannel scraps in your stash, you should be able to find a few old cotton flannel shirts at any thrift shop. Be sure they’re 100% cotton. Slice off any seams, buttons and pockets, and cut up the remaining flannel into 4.5” squares. Pin pairs of squares together and sew along three of the four sides. Snip off corners and turn right side out. Fill each warmer with uncooked rice about 2/3 full. Add a drop or two of essential oil (I like lavender). Tuck in the raw edges and sew each packet shut. The next time you head out into the cold, microwave a pair of hand warmers 25 to 30 seconds, then stuff one in each coat pocket.

The Potting Shed

One Reddit user puts his four-year-old daughter to bed not with songs or bedtime stories, but with fascinating facts. He recently went online to request more, and readers happily obliged. Here’s a small sample:

When dogs or wolves in movies must look mean, their tails are added later with CGI. Canine actors are so happy to be doing a good job, they can’t stop their tails wagging.

In Switzerland, it’s illegal to own just one guinea pig. You must have at least two, because they get lonely.

Oxford University in England (which was established in 1096) is much older than the Aztec empire (1438 to 1533).

Marsupials and egg-laying mammals don’t have belly buttons.

Humans are bioluminescent. We glow in the dark. But the light we emit is 1,000 times too dim for our own eyes to see.

Most elephants weigh less than a blue whale’s tongue does.

Botanically speaking, a strawberry isn’t really a berry. But a banana is.

Red and Blue Squares

I received so many wonderful gifts this Christmas, but the biggest surprise was an instant pot. It came with lots of intriguing recipes, but most of them require ingredients I don’t have on hand. I’m declaring my first experiment a success. John called it “the best breakfast ever.”

Instant Pot Eggs en Cocotte

Butter

3 large eggs

3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

3 tablespoons grated mild cheddar

3 teaspoons cream

A few strips roasted red pepper

Butter bottom and sides of three ramekins. Break an egg into each. Top each egg with bacon, cheese, pepper and cream. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place rack and a cup of water in instant pot. Put all three ramekins on rack. Close and seal lid; set to pressure cook on low heat two minutes. As soon as the time is up, use a wooden spoon to release steam. Open instant pot and serve eggs with hot toast.