Psalm 63:1-9


O God, you are my god, for You I long;
for You my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for You
like a dry, weary land without water.
So I gaze on You in the sanctuary
to see Your strength and Your glory.

For Your love is better than life,
my lips will speak Your praise.
So I will bless You all my life,
in Your Name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,
my mouth shall praise You with joy.

On my bed I remember You.
On You I muse through the night
for You have been my help;
in the shadow of Your wings I rejoice.
My soul clings to you;
Your right hand holds me fast

God bless us, everyone.

Well, He does, and He certainly did yestreday! We were fortunate enough that the temps only got into the low thirties and the wind wasn't bad, so I was able to make a fire and grill our CHRISTmas dinner!

I marinated our bone-in ribeye steaks over night in Italian dressing, and then only seasoned both with a little fresh cracked black pepper. 145 before the sear for my sweetie and 115 before the sear for mine, then the blackening for about 10 minutes to get both up to temperature. I threw in  a bundle of asparagus and mushrooms to complement our meat and potato dinner. What a treat!!

Our boiling potatoes with the skins on, these get butter, sour cream, and a bit of cream cheese. MMMM-MMMMM

Strawberry sauce for on top of the cheesecake

The beginnings of our stock, to which i added the beef bone for our stroganoff later in the week

Corn sliced from the cob -sweet and crunchy!

onions to go with the...

...mushrooms, which I cooked in butter, garlic, and red wine

Bella mushrooms: hearty, meaty, full of flavor

The best steaks I've ever had! (Dad's on the grill when we were kids notwithstanding).

125 for the perfect rare done-ness and delicious-ness

CHRISTmas goodness for which we were most thankful; God be praised!

21 December 2018

The days will be not be getting shorter any more, here in the northern latitudes! I am thankful for this change.

I cannot see as well as I used to and it is sometimes difficult for me to drive at night. We use more electricity and gas in the winter months; longer days means (generally) warmer temps and (gradually increasing) longer days.

Longer days means we are on the way to spring - not that I am wishing the CHRISTmas season away by any stretch of the imagination!

I work until 5:00 now, and not 3 some days and 10:30 some days. I sure loved the three oh five done times because it meant for more afternoon drinking time! But now that I'm really not drinking, I would still like to be off earlier, even though it meant getting up earlier. I lounge around nowadays until 7:30 or 8:00, hitting snooze all willie-nillie while the sun gets up and higher and higher!

It has been raining and foggy for the past couple of days, but we may have a little snow for CHRISTmas day! I just talked to my sweetie and she is looking forward to my spaghetti tonight. We may also have shepherds pie and sugar cookies this weekend. And maybe I will make a cheesecake to give away :-)

Mindy Gledhill - Patapan

lunch walk

on the boardwalk, panoramic river view
icy
met the 300 Ducks
not worrying,
not resisting
some quiet, some squawking

crisp
light snow
very little breeze
'the Babe, the Son of Mary' running through my brains

no chapstick
no phone
'adventure is out there!'
push on to the end

at a thousand paces the boardwalk ended
turn around
oh oh! low sugar

couple of smarties...
not enough
the rest of them...
not enough
keep walking, get back
nutrigrain bar...
not enough
oh well, keep walking, push
staggering like a drunk
the tell-tale whitening of everything I see
almost back...

cross the road 3-2-1 STOP - but i can make it
stagger up the steps, to the hot room
fridge there with yogurt and fruit
sit down with spoon and cold goodness
across my palet and tongue
down the throat
bringing slow relief

wipe the sweat, log the carbs
back to work

thank You for getting me back safely

prayer

Praying for peace in the hearts of our family and friends:
May Caoimhin continue to smile
St Monica pray for us
May MM heal
St Joseph pray for us
May there be reconciliation in broken relationships
Mother Mary pray for us
May King RP bow to You and You Alone
St Peter pray for us
May we all be kinder, gentler, more patient
St Paul pray for us

Dearest Father~

This morning I am thankful for Jesus, His Life and teachings, His Death and Resurrection, for Your Providence and for Your Protection.
Thank You for the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our LORD Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
Thank You for our material goods, for food and drink, family and friends, life, loving, and laughter.

Thank You for the gift of You.

May Your Name be praised in all places at all times, Hallelujah!

Ben Hur 1959 (Soundtrack) 05. Fanfare To Prelude _ Prelude _ Marcia Romana

Ray Conniff & the Ray Connif Singers - We wish you a merry christmas (Fu...

Vince Guaraldi Trio - The Charlie Brown Christmas Songs (FULL ALBUM - GR...

Much to be thankful for we have

Zach Williams - Fear Is a Liar (Official Music Video)

Lots and none at all

Much has taken place in recent weeks.

Irrevelance

On the morning of my anticipated fantasy victory this weekend, and while I am half-way enjoying leftover gameday chili, I am saddened by the beating our Spartans endured yestreday, losing 21-7 to the team from Ann Arbor. MSU (4-3, 2-2 in B1G) must have punted seventeen times in 60 game minutes, and only managed to put one score on the board (on a perfectly-executed double reverse pass play) the entire game. At the time, seven points was enough to tie the Wolverines (7-1, 5-0 in the B1G) in the third quarter. but seven points will never win a FBS game.*

I'm not saying seven points has never won a college football contest, but in to-day's scoring-happy, offense-protected climate, seven is a pretty poor effort. Our offensive line is a joke. Lewerke was 5-25 passing for 66 yards. Rushing was just as bad: 44 yards on 19 carries, NOT including the sacks.

Pathetic, no matter who you're playing.

There will be no talk of playoffs. Playoffs?!?

There will be no talk of B1G championships.

There will be no talk of 'salvaging' the season, the season has been given away. Given to a once tough ASU squad who now look pretty mediocre.
Given to our recent-years nemesis Wildcats of Northwestern, who couldn't even beat Duke, and BARELY beat both Rutgers and Nebraska (a combined 1-13 overall).

Hat's off to Michigan, our true Big Brother. 






*As an example, in Weeks 7 and  8 (October 11-13 and October 18-20) there were only 16 teams that scored seven points or less, and all 16 lost. 11 of those 16 teams scored exactly seven points.

https://www.loyolapress.com/retreats/basic-needs-start-retreat

Sunday Bowling Fun

Blest were we to have a few hours with the grandkids at the Brighton Bowl

Friday I'm In Love by 'Scars on 45'

10/2

From the daily flip calendar that sits on my desk at work:

Sunshine spills through autumn-colored leaves, lighting up their brilliance like stained-glass windows in a great cathedral, expressing the wonder of God's love, declaring His glory.

7 Year-Old Crushes National Anthem, Zlatan Approves

The Little Drummer Boy (Perfect Version)

And Can It Be

Oh the memories this brings back from the 90's, I played this tape over and over and over.
Beautiful harmonies; arranged by Bob Kauflin.
Amazing love...

Easter Song

Acappella - Only Truth

Acappella - Easter Song

More Precious than gold - The Acapella Company

Five Iron Frenzy - Suckerpunch

Handbook for the Sellout

We were blessed with a good amount of rain overnight (the farmers would say something like 'we got about an inch and a half') and it has rained most of the day to-day.

I was able to make a good herb harvest before the rain, so they will be plenty watered and happy for the final month or so of growing. Already I have enough of my 'Scarborough Fair' mix for probably four or five 7 oz shakers. (And I just found a bit from last year - I thought I had run out!)

Michigan plays at noon Saturday and Sparty at 7:30 but the game I really want to see is ASU at Washington, starting at about 4am on Sunday. I want to see if those Aztecs and their top rated receiver whom the camera seemed to be affixed on all night a couple weeks ago can hang with a real top 10 team. I surely hope they open up a can of whoop-ass on the Huskies.


I did a rump roast on the grill last night that I looked so forward to slicing up for sandwiches on our fresh onion buns from Polly Market but the whole event was pretty much of a flop. I tried the sliced potatoes dressed in EVOO and Montreal Chicken seasoning right on the grill (using my new six dollar 16" tongs, only six casualties:-) but duh that doesn't work when you're indirectly cooking a three pound roast and need the lid closed. It ended up taking way too long, the charcoal all burned up, and I had to throw the roast in the oven for a half hour or so. The buns were soggy, the swiss cheese I thought would be a perfect match for that smoked beef did nothing for the sandwiches, and the potatoes were cold by the time we were ready to eat (although they did well as a snack dipped in our ranch/ketchup mix). Oh well, God is good, and we always have more than enough to eat and drink - praise His Name!

I'm ready to slice a bit off that roast for a taste for while I watch Jeopardy tonight.

Thank You, Father, for getting me through another work day;

Thank You for the many blessings along the way.

Thank You for giving me patience to deal with difficult situations,

and thank You for Your Son - The Example of Love.

Why Remain Catholic? (With So Much Scandal)

Lord Jesus Christ, in this place and at this time, I am your hands, feet, ears, eyes, and heart. Lead me to work for justice where I live and in the world around me.

Rod Allen Japan

Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Hansel and Gretel

The Gingerbread Man

Little Brave Sambo (Peter Pan Records) 1971

Desde la Cruz

My prayer is that my protesting family and friends would know the mercy and love of the LORD through the truth and fullness of the Catholic Church

LORD in Your mercy;
Hear our prayer

I yam at work

Back in my comfy air-conditioned closet at the computer on a gorgeous autumn Tuesday morning. We all moved our vehicles so the big truck with our new sign could park and hoist; I am now in front of Lu and Carls.
Nancy's youngest is enjoying his first day of high school in Livonia so we are praying especially for Ric to-day.
We got about two hours of decent rain on Saturday and everything is lush and green again.

Our first Summer Ruffle Rose of Sharon

Love those dusty rose colored sedums

Our rescue dogwood is getting bigger every day!

Add caption

Our mailbox box with maiden grass, summer ruffle, and mystery weed that keeps coming back

This year's crab apple population is highest ever, wonder why no one eats them

This is a new box we built on the west side of the shed; the impatiens are thriving

Our one bell pepper plant has produced more than I ever would have expected; the friut is just now reddening

The second wave of chilies are getting up to size; we should have an excellent fall harvest

Oregano is always welcome

English Thyme ready to be harvested

Inadvertent hot and spicy oregano

I don't ... know what... to say.

With fans blowing furiously here in Hamburg Hills

At the beginning of his homily this morning, Pastor expressed his dismay at the recent Church clergy abuses and then offered prayers, consolation, words of hope, and reminders that there is really nothing new under the sun. With personal testimony and stories, he tied in all four of to-days readings in a brilliant and heartfelt discourse. 

We had a good deal of rain yestreday and some associated breezes coming through the windows bringing movement to our curtains and blinds.  It is very muggy again to-day already, but Alexa has assured me there is no rain in the forecast.

College football dominated my recreation hours (and hours and hours) yestreday; the peak and climactic summit realised itself in another true road loss for the perennially over-rated Wolverines of Ann Arbor. I am, after last night, a renewed Notre Dame fan, due to both the many student-athletes and fans I noticed wearing Christian signs and symbols as well as the beautiful colorific 'The Word of Life' mural on campus - visible from the stadium and affectionately referred to as Touchdown Jesus.

Shoring up our deck railings using some super long screws, already cleaned the cat litter after mass. Yestreday I harvested more tomatoes along with my Scarborough Fair herbs; the second wave of chilies are getting close to ripeness - indeed as I do have some bacon in the fridge as well as some cream cheese, I will put poppers on the menu with our burgers and dogs. 

Do you also want to leave?

Lord, to whom shall we go? YOU have the words of eternal life.

Alleluia, alleluia!!

Epic Michigan State Radio Call Of MSU vs Michigan Ending With Video

Still gives me shivers. The emotion in the voices of George Blaha and Jason Strayhorn take me back to yestreyear, on that fateful night, as I dropped to my knees in joy and wonder and sobbed violently.

Praise God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!!

Thank You for another day, for this new day, Lord! Thank You for all of Your blessings, love, mercy, forgiveness, and graces. Thank You for Jesus, Who bought us with a terrible price. Thank You for Love, for You.

All praise to God, Who reigns above!

Draw Nigh and Take the Body of the Lord (Old 124th)

LORD's day musings

I have been harvesting the herbs regularly and depositing each in their own Kroger bag to dry out. Every time I grill, I do also four jalapeno poppers as an appetizer/side dish. Oh, you must be sure to have a tall cold beverage nearby when indulging in these I tell you!
Our three cherry tomato varieties turned out to be as different as the three Baldner children. The cherry reds are a small compact variety that provided the earliest fruit (red, bland tomatoes) and they are almost done producing. The yellow cherry are by far the most delicious and eat-off-the-vine friendly: each cluster ripens fruit by fruit, making these easy to keep track of and harvest; and there is very little splitting or falling off the vines. The burgundy variety are the largest (almost golf ball size) but most of these are splitting before they get fully ripe - i don't understand this. Their flavor is sweet and good, but because of the splitting I am using these to make sauce.
So far (mid-August) this year's chili pepper plants have been the healthiest I've ever been blest with. Two plants of the 'mammoth' variety have provided consistent four inch fruit all summer; their smaller cousins (also two plants) have produced healthy (albiet smaller ) fruit as well.
The strawberries have been pretty consistent all year as well - mostly small healthy fruit, as long as I get to them before the pests do.
I only harvested two raspberries all year so far, there has been heavy insect damage to the leaves and this is their first year since being transplanted.
I have been watering mr. basil from the bottom as per the nice lady at the Dexter Farm Market and this year's plant has also been very healthy and productive.

The safflower feeders have been popular with the chickadees, cardinals, house finches, sparrows of divers natures, pigeons; as well as an occasional treat for mr rose-breasted grossbeak and mr chipmunk. The latter has come maybe thrice to my knowledge, the latter I don't know how often for he is shifty and evasive. Two of these I have dispatched already this year, and there is one more who comes more recently but it has been a few weeks since I've seen him.
The planter hosta and catmint are as big as ever; the front lilac and forsythia are bigger than ever and restrict my north view significantly. Even the Swarthout crab apple has surpassed its former glory both in height and in breadth.
Our newest additions, the summer ruffle rose of sharons and the dogwood (and their associated accent grasses and sedums) are all doing well this year. Moni has kept the grass well-watered in the absence of rain this summer (thankfully we do not pay for water:-).

 Otis has been more recluse and acting out and I do not like him.

Mid-eighties to-day but there is still a nice breeze, God be praised!

After a stellar first thirty days or so, the cucumber plants have turned lime yellow and have only produced retarded fruit. I added some serious 0-50-0 as per the advice of the nice Big Acre lady, and also some all purpose 24-8-16 just yestreday. We shall see, we shall see....

The pickling has been fun this year and I feel I am (after three full years) done experimenting. A simple tablespoon of kosher salt in a 3:1 water to vinegar solution boiled briefly, then poured over the sliced cucs, garlic, red pepper flakes, whole dill fronds (many), and then a chili pepper cut once for a good robust pickle. They have been crisp and hearty. Don't skimp on the dill, and don't skimp on the garlic. The one chili is plenty - if the LORD provides enough fruit for two more jars this year, i might split one chili into two jars.

I have been exceedingly lacking in my genealogy research for the past year. I blame the nice weather and ... um sloth.

To-day later i cook some tomatoes into sauce, and then on the grill: split breast of chicken, thighs, and legs from Polly Market On The Lake with our home-made barbecue sauce, potato bundles, and jalapeno poppers :-)

Padre celestial, gracias por la vida, gracias por tantas bendiciones.

SIERVAS - Arrullando al Niño

SIERVAS - La Asunción

Himno por la vida - Siervas

SIERVAS - REENCUENTRO (Video oficial) porque eres mi buen padre

The Summons

I Am the Bread of Life - Toolan | Notre Dame Folk Choir

American Idiot

The King Of Love My Shepherd Is

De Camptown Ladies?

Still hot, so hot, and muggy here in beautiful Whitmore Lake. Possible rain tomorrow and then cooler temperatures God be praised! Fifties at night!

I watered everything earlier, except one hanging basket of red begonias we have in a basket hanging from the plum tree, and the tomatoes - who looked quite happy.

I picked up some safflower after mass at the Tractor Supply in Howell ($18.49 for 20#) and filled both feeders. Both birdbaths are (relatively) clean and filled, and I even layed down some water on the yellow spots of our lawn. (These I must add, are few and far between, as Moni has done a wonderful job of keeping the yard watered. Other than a very brief sprinkle last night, we have been without rain since June 18.)

There is much construction in Brighton these days. They are slimming down the westernmost Lee Road roundabout from three to two lanes, the Kroger is undergoing a huge facelift and expansion, and there are several new builds going in along Wynans Lake Rd west of Rickett. Also, there are numerous new commercial enterprises along the south side of Grand River near Whitmore Lake Rd.

The sky if full of cumulus clouds, but not enough to give us shade and a respite from the direct sun. In The Kitchen With David has been peddling Christmas food and drink all day. He's probably got the best job in the entire history of jobs. Greeting people, trying steaks and popcorn and cashews and wine and croissants all day, ... I bet Mrs David has learned to not have a big dinner ready for him when he gets home from work. I learned this past week that QVC is from Pennsylvania, thanks to Alex on Jeopardy!

I made a big-ass sub on Kroger bread (not unlike the ten we did for Jon's get-together a couple weeks ago) and maybe I could go meet David and sell these on QVC?!? Kroger roast beef, oven roasted turkey, and Black Forest ham, fresh American cheese slices, red onion, green pepper from our garden, romaine lettuce, and even some sliced chicken breast all combine for a hearty snack ( or make it a meal with Frito Lays Potato Chips or Kroger Pretzel Twists on the side.) We are blessed indeed.

I have two quarts of strawberries and about a pint of blueberries to add to my vanilla yogurt this week, there is enough Ruby Reds and nasty fiber to add to my Skim milk for a good daily shake, and my fantasy MLB team is on its way to winning its sixth straight week. We have been harvesting yellow cherry tomatoes for about a week now and I just filled my third jar of cucumbers for pickles already. We are blessed; life is good.

Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits

Did you see the size of that gun he fired at us? It was bigger than him.

Before we read the full online  article, you know we like to look at the inset bullet points, to see if this is really what we were looking for in our google search...

The article I found was on Best Ways to Get Rid of Chipmunks, but i didn't know if it was by a naturist, homeopathic, organic, prissy ass, NPR-listening, anti-Trump loser or not. The copied below summary made me laugh:




22

Subject

• Chipmunks
• Alias: Eastern chipmunks
• Difficulty: Intermediate
• Requirements: weed wacker, hardware cloth, repellents, traps, poisons, fumigants, baffles, thistle seeds, safflower seeds

Gracious God, fill me with Your grace, 

that I may be open to Your presence in every fiber of my being, 

every minute of my day, 

and in every person I meet.

Green Day - When I Come Around - [HQ]

Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of family. 

May I continue to grow in my appreciation of the sacredness of family life.

Run D.M.C - Run D.M.C Deluxe Edition [Full Album]

Father~

Grant me the grace this day to be foolish in love.

Let there be no other driving force behind my 

thoughts, words, and actions.

Fill me with You good Spirit;

Let me love with reckless abandon!

In the Name of Jesus I ask this; amen.

The spiderwort show us the first color in early June. My Parsley Sage Rosemary and Thyme along with basil jalapenos and cucumbers are all in their containers. And I have three varieties of cherry tomatoes in the ground box.

Pink Floyd - Another Brick In The Wall (HQ)

Lord of lords~

Please empower me with Your graces

so that I can resist the temptation to sin -

all manner of sin -

ones I think 'big' as well as ones I think 'not so big'.

Change my heart, so that I 

think like You,

see others like You do,

and see myself as You do.

May Your Name be praised now and forever!

 

funny

'Anyone who denies the Trinity is in danger of losing their salvation, and anyone who tries to understand it is in danger of losing their mind.'

'May I never miss a sunset or a rainbow because I'm looking down.'

'Other rappers can't stand us, but give us respect.'

'I am most ill when I'm robbin' and stealin'.'

'The seller concession has to be handled by the underwriter.'

'White Castle fries only come in one size.'

'I'm a person, and My name is Anakin.'

'Hard times are spreadin' just like the flu; watch out, homeboy, don't let it get you.'

'You're the kinda guy the girls ignored; I'm driving a Caddie, you're fixing a Ford.'

'Internet Explorer absolutely sucks.'

'Wake up Motley, cuz you're dreamin' again.'

https://www.loyolapress.com/retreats/caring-for-gods-garden?utm_source=3mrlist&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20180524&utm_campaign=3mr

Simon and Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water

John Martignoni via https://www.ewtn.com/multimedia/audio-library/index.asp . rock and roll!

The Lutheran Hymnal #19 "All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above"

I've had this hymn in my heart all night, and been humming/singing it all morning...
Praise our LORD!

"All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above"
by Johann J. Schuetz, 1640-1690

1. All praise to God, who reigns above,
The God of all creation,
The God of wonders, power, and love,
The God of our salvation!
With healing balm my soul He fills,
The God who every sorrow stills,--
To God all praise and glory!

2. What God's almighty power hath made
His gracious mercy keepeth;
By morning dawn or evening shade
His watchful eye ne'er sleepeth;
Within the kingdom of His might
Lo, all is just and all is right,--
To God all praise and glory!

3. I cried to Him in time of need:
Lord God, oh, hear my calling!
For death He gave me life indeed
And kept my feet from falling.
For this my thanks shall endless be;
Oh, thank Him, thank our God, with me,--
To God all praise and glory!

4. The Lord forsaketh not His flock,
His chosen generation;
He is their Refuge and their Rock,
Their Peace and their Salvation.
As with a mother's tender hand
He leads His own, His chosen band,--
To God all praise and glory!

5. Ye who confess Christ's holy name,
To God give praise and glory!
Ye who the Father's power proclaim,
To God give praise and glory!
All idols under foot be trod,
The Lord is God! The Lord is God!
To God all praise and glory!

6. Then come before His presence now
And banish fear and sadness;
To your Redeemer pay your vow
And sing with joy and gladness:
Though great distress my soul befell,
The Lord, my God, did all things well,--
To God all praise and glory!


The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #19
Text: Deut. 32:3
Author: Johann J. Schuetz, 1675, cento
Translated by: composite
Titled: "Sei Lob und Ehr' dem hoechsten Gut"
Composer: Melchior Vulpius, 1609
Tune: "Lobet den Herrn, ihr"

Desde la Cruz

Siervas - Confía en Dios

SIERVAS - HOY DESPIERTO

I am I am A Michigan Man

I have not tried this recipe, but it was presented to me this past Thursday by Jimmy of the Michigan Out Of Doors crew via the chef at Antlers Canadian Lakes, where my bride and I used to hang out many moons ago. It looks good, and I will probably try it out next weekend.

Game Jambalaya

½ cup vegetable oil

1.5 Cups diced onion

1 Cup diced green pepper

1 Cup diced celery

2 Bay leaves

1TB Cajun seasoning

½ Lb Andouille or smoked sausage, diced

2 Cups diced tomatoes

2QTS Chicken stock

½ TB Tobasco

1tsp Salt

1TB Worcestershire

1LB 4oz long grain rice

½ Lb Crawfish, shrimp or any fish you may have around

1LB Pheasant or any other game you might have, chunked

1. In large pan sauté onion, pepper and celery over medium heat until soft. 5-8 minutes
2. Add bay leaves, Cajun seasoning, sausage and tomatoes and sauté for 3 minutes
3. Add rice and cook for 1 more minute
4. Add stock, tobacco Worcestershire and salt and bring to a boil
5. Once that a boil is achieved reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes or until most liquid is evaporated and rice is cooked
6. Add all seafood and meat and cook until cooked through

Terrific Thursday to-day, but boy it was warm this morning already! But now, as I sit in our upper office in front of the open window opening to Grand River Avenue in beautiful downtown Brighton, the breeze coming in is cool and comfortable. Praise God!
So much going on been so busy as all of a sudden we have actual spring temp and so everything is budding and blooming and greening up and birds and bees and yardwork!

From P-Dubster

and worth repeating:

Life is a gift.
Life is a gift.

Father, let me never forget this. Thank You

for every moment of every day 

that we get to live, laugh, breathe and love.

So many do not have any more minutes

I am thankful for the ones You've provided. 

"For All the Saints," by the Lutheran Quartet

Christ, our King, our Savior dear
Be our strength, to us stay near

Christ, our Lord, true God, true Man
Sacrificed in God's holy plan

Christ, our Sufficiency, our Life, our All
At home, work, and in touch football

Christ beside me, Christ within me
Christ the One Who daily fills me

Love incarnate, Love Divine
Let Your love also be mine

Random banter

Otis has been pulling his hair out in clumps. He does not eat the hair, but leaves it in a pile wherever he rests during his maleficent time: on our bed, near the slider where the sun shines through in the morning and it's nice and warm, on the sofa or chair.
When he was young and thin, he opened up a sore on his side that he kept licking, causing it to fester. We had the sore treated, and then provided Otie with the Cone of Shame, so that he would leave the sore alone. It worked and the sore healed.
But what we learned from those visits with the vet was that cats can be extremely allergic to dust, the food he's being given, or other environmental factors. Where we might get watery eyes or sneezy as a reaction, cats are more prone to have itchy skin.
Sometimes they just over-groom, because it's such a good feeling for them (an endorphine-releasing activity, like when people work out) and they just plain old want more of it.
Sometimes, they use the activity as a release of stress, in the absence of a loved person, or in the presence of another pet, for example.

I think Otie just likes to act out, and will continue to do it as long as he knows it irritates the hell out of me. I have moved his food and water bowls into the room with his litter and now keep the bedroom doors closed so as to minimize the area I might have to clean after him. I am trying to not over-react when he gets up on the counter or doesn't bury his what-not in the freshly cleaned litter box so as to minimize stress in his life.
He's so cute, and very friendly when he gets to know you; I want him to be happy and healthy too.

Although he is not an original member of the Glowy Eyed Pets from Another Dimension, The Glow is strong with him. 

The Tigers are winning their Saturday afternoon game right now, in the 7th; after losing last night in the 9th to sucky 1-9 in their last ten games Kansas City - a blown save and loss for Shane Green. Well the Tigers are two games below .500 as the weather breaks, and game-time temps should routinely be above 35 degrees from here on out.
I am at peace with the fact that Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello, David Price, and Robby Ray are doing well in their starting positions with other teams. Doug Fister, Anibal Sanchez, and Drew Smyly are currently on the DL but could very well be doing quite well with other teams, and this is OK, too.


I hung a shelf in the kitchen for our herbs and spices near the stove, and couldn't be happier with it. Moni snagged it from the Lakehouse; and in It's honor, we are leaving the rack Lakehouse-blue.

Among other good seasonings - parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme.

The Cardinals have been daily visitors to our safflower feeders; the hopping and singing Robins have also enjoyed a cake of suet I've left out on a shelf on the deck. The European Starlings, despite hoards of them living among us, have not been able to get comfortable at the hanging suet cages, due to strategically placed baffles. Our last snow about a week ago stayed long enough into the day to show me tracks of bunnies galore, which I didn't see too much of during the winter. Downy Woodpeckers, Nuthatches and Chickadees have been regular visitors as well.


I recently bought a used 6-string Alvarez acoustic guitar. I like it - it sounds good and one day I will be a rock star.


I will not be growing pumpkins this year; nor will I attempt corn, carrots, or green bell peppers. My for-sures are going to be cucumbers for pickling, heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and jalapenos, along with my herbs: sage, rosemary, thyme, basil, parsley. And I will plant garlic this fall!


I 'made' a loaf of bread to-day (in my faithful Copper Chef pan), and it smells pretty good in here. It's the frozen kind you get at Walmart and then let sit for four hours thawing before you bake it. I basted it with butter and then seasoned with garlic powder for the final five minutes - hot and fresh, drenched in butter -  holy moly is it good!

Holy moly indeed.

The grass is beginning to green, but there are few buds yet - on this 21st day of April in the year of our Lord twenty eighteen.

"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty," by the Lutheran Quartet

Loving Father~

I pray to-day that all my protesting family and friends

would come to know You, Your Son, and Your Spirit

through the fullness and truth of the Catholic Church.

Jesus, let the joy of the Resurrection be the enduring grace that guides my life.

Blessed be God forever! 

Track 04 "Love Song" - Album "Third Day" - Artist "Third Day"

'...well all of those dreams are an empty emotion, it can never been done.'

Track 06 "Thief" - Album "Third Day" - Artist "Third Day"

'... they nail Him to the rugged cross, and raise Him, yeah they raise Him up next to me...'

All the things in this world are gifts

and signs of God's love to us. The whole

world is a love letter from God.

~Peter Kreeft

'That boy is our last hope.'

~'No; there is another.'

Recipe #115 - Canta el Gallo Sandwich

I made a fruitful trip this beautiful Easter morning to Dexter, where we like to shop at the County Market ( https://bit.ly/2Gtlgfu ). Alas, the Country Market was not open on this glorious morn, but the POS Busch's was across the street. (Please consider this an absolute non-endorsement for this grocer. Over-priced from avocado to zip-lock, I cannot fathom why anyone would purposefully shop at Bush's if they had any choice at all.)

I was able to score four fresh onion buns that I thought I would enjoy later with some lunchmeat.

Well, I surely was not buying lunch meat at this establishment, so I came home with my cat litter, Buffalo Trace, and overpriced plain yogurt.

I began the kitchen festivities then with some pasta sauce:
In a tablespoon of EVOO, I sauteed one yellow onion diced, one green bell pepper diced, four garlic cloves diced, and one pound of ground Jennie-O turkey.
As the meat was simmering, I added 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms and one half of a beautiful 2 pound Heirloom tomato diced up. Then I added the jar of Ragu Bold and Spicy sauce.

Seasoned with dried basil and oregano, and with a bag of frozen broccoli and cauliflower thrown in  for good vegetable-measure, I left this on low for about an hour.

There was some boneless chicken breast I had pulled out of the freezer a couple days ago and wanted to use up, so I thought - hey, how about a sammich?!?

I butterflied the chicken and seasoned it with my garden herb mix, and then fried in a little EVOO-laden Copper Chef pan. 

I topped the chicken with some sliced Munster cheese at the end. The pricey onion bun I dressed with some salad dressing and slices of the aforementioned good-ass tomato.

I then poured a ladle of the sauce over the meat, and took a couple photos.

That Muenster cheese really compliments the tomato sauce and chicken, the buns didn't disintegrate with all the sauce (worth the five buck pricetag :-), and the tomatoes didn't fall apart during the devouring process.

This is going to be the premier sandwich on our menu, when we open our diner.


Soli Deo gloria!