May Diversions

Got my act together in time to post this before the festivities started…

 

 6 - National Day of Prayer

Wow! If this country ever really needed prayer it’s right now! God is the only one who can set things straight!

 

8 - MAD Magazine hits the newsstands. (1952)

I absolutely LOVED this magazine! In the mid 60s my cousin Greg was visiting and left his MAD magazine behind and I devoured it and thirsted for more. I got that magazine every month and stopped around 1978 or so. So many great memories.

 

 9 - Lost Sock Memorial Day

We’ve all been there. One leaves and the other remains. What do you do? In my case, I just go ahead and pair the singleton with another singleton and wear them. That’s also what I do when I get a hole in one sock, but the other one is still fine.

 

25 – Towel Day

If you haven’t read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, shame on you! 

 

 

30 - Mint Julep Day

Apparently this is THE drink to have when you go to the Kentucky Derby. It’s probably pretty taste without the horses, too…

 

Mint Julep Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

Sprigs of fresh mint

Crushed ice

Old Forester Straight Bourbon Whisky (I would use my personal fave, Jack Daniels)

Silver Julep Cups (Ehhh, glass is good enough for me)

 

How to Make Mint Juleps:

Make a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes.

Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight. Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of Old Forester Kentucky Whisky.

Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

 

If you can’t make it to the Derby, sit back and relax, drinking a julep and reading a Black Stallion book by Walter Farley. I loved that series as a kid!

 

 

April Diversions

I discovered this site that lists all sorts of stuff for each day in a month. Obviously, it’s pretty late in the month for April, but here’s some things you can mark on your calendar for next year…

 

1 – National Burrito Day

I know this day has already passed but it’s a good one to celebrate any time. I used to LOVE Naugle’s breakfast burrito and truly mourned when the chain went out of business. It was revived by another entity, but they are only located in southern CA. I still make my own with eggs, cheese and Taco Bell sauce. Something I learned from Sarah is making them with leftover potatoes included as well. Sometimes just using leftover meat and potatoes. With cheese, of course.

 

4 – International Carrot Day

This day has passed as well, but carrots are always healthy. Great with cream cheese dip. A couple of times I tried canned carrot and orange juice. It was OK, but not something I would drink a lot of. My favorite way to eat carrots is in cake. With cream cheese frosting. With a frosting carrot on the top.

 

 

8 – National Empanada Day

WHY did Taco Bell stop serving these??? Their caramel apple ones were AWESOME. So were the sopapillas they used to have many years ago, although never in any TB in this area.

In other news, this is also Draw a Picture of a Bird Day. So here is my bird. Tweet.

 

 

12 – Alfred Butts BD

Alfred was the inventor of Scrabble, one of my absolute favorites, although I can’t get anyone to play with me. My parents used to play this and I can remember being very little and wanting to put those tiles on the board myself. I couldn’t spell yet, but I knew this was something I wanted to do.

 

27 – Samuel Morse BD

It’s also Marvin’s BD, but that is another story…

Here is what Mr. Morse was famous for: (click on the link)

https://morsecode.world/m?m=eJxjYhIRKU7MLU3NUcjNLypOVcjMK0vNK0lNgXKT81NSAdNEDHg%3D 

 

And that’s April for ya! The bottom line is: No matter what it is you celebrate, CELEBRATE every day!

 

 

Everything is Upside Down…

 

I decided to try something different this week. Here is the result. I don't intend to do my entire post this way, just wanted to give you a sample...

 

˙˙˙ǝןdɯɐs ɐ noʎ ǝʌıb oʇ pǝʇuɐʍ ʇsnظ 'ʎɐʍ sıɥʇ ʇsod ǝɹıʇuǝ ʎɯ op oʇ puǝʇuı ʇ,uop ı ˙ʇןnsǝɹ ǝɥʇ sı ǝɹǝɥ ˙ʞǝǝʍ sıɥʇ ʇuǝɹǝɟɟıp buıɥʇǝɯos ʎɹʇ oʇ pǝpıɔǝp ı

 

Just like in “Stranger Things” there seems to be another dimension where everything is the opposite of what sane people would call “normal”. That place is called the Upside Down. And after what went on in 2020, and continues to go on, that’s what it feels like.

 

Most of what I learned or was taught in my youth is not considered acceptable now. Christian values are no longer acceptable. There is no sense of humor about ANYTHING. EVERYTHING is offensive.

 

I have never been so fearful in my country. Not just for freedom for its own sake, but for my freedom as a Christian. I’ve always loved the German song “Die Gedanken sind frei (my thoughts are free.” Sadly it’s no longer true. Our thoughts are NOT free.

 

It’s a continuation of what I wrote for New Year’s Day. Which not many people saw because I didn’t link that blog post to FB. You had to WANT to read it to see it, and actually go to the website. FB has gotten more and more toxic and mean-spirited toward people like me.

 

I enjoy playing my games and connecting with my kids and close friends, but that’s about it. If I have something serious to say, I know better than to say it on FB. So far I have managed to avoid Facebook Jail by being a coward. Yes, I am a coward! And for my own mental health I will remain so on FB.

 

I have always said that if you don’t like what I say, just scroll past. But what people do is slam me and say nasty things or try to argue. I do a LOT of scrolling past with no comment, because I’m not on FB to fight or argue. All I try to do is post something to make people smile. I don’t think there is much smiling going on anymore.

 

I know this is a very negative post and I have to really fight against negativity. I cling to the FACT that God is sovereign. Soli Deo Gloria.