Moolie - Happy Thanksgiving :)

[Denim Deb]

Around here, you'll see veterans w/poppies near Independence Day, Memorial Day and Veteran's Day. If I see one, I always make sure to get one as well as thank the veteran for their part in my freedom.

 

[FarmerJamie]

So I changed my avatar today, and feel inclined to write a little about my choice:

http://www.rgdyck.com/moolie/october11/moolie.jpg

The image I chose is a Remembrance Day poppy. Canadians wear these from late October/November 1 till November 11 (Remembrance Day) in remembrance of our fallen veterans. November 11th has significance because the Great War (WWI) ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.

I personally chose to wear a poppy, keep Remembrance Day by attending a ceremony of Remembrance at our local Military Museum, and teaching my children about past and current wars/conflicts because "those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it".

Getting a poppy is always a slightly emotional thing for me as well. Veterans sit at tables with trays of poppys at the entrances and exits to stores or in malls with coin boxes for donations to the Veteran's Fund. In my city, the money goes to several Veteran's charities including the Veteran's Food Bank. I always scrounge my car, change purse, sofa cushions for all the change I can find and deposit it in the coin box, then stand patiently while some lovely elderly gent pins my poppy on my collar. This year I got my poppy from an Army veteran who was probably in his 80s who had a faint scent of Old Spice, which always reminds me of my late Grandpa.

In Canada, most provinces have what my family calls "V-plates" or license plates that denote that the vehicle owner is a Veteran. It is a sad world we live in, when some of these plates are on vehicles driven my young men and women younger than myself, and I constantly pray for peace in the world so that some day no young person needs to experience the horrors of war and the post-traumatic stress that comes home with the veterans who make it through. But until that day, I will wear my poppy, donate to Veteran's charities, pray for people caught up in wars and armed conflict, and teach my children about the horror of war--hoping that others do the same.

Over the next week, my DS's Young Marine Unit has 6 veterans-related events, including helping in a ceremony at the National Cemetery here in Ohio, serving punch and cookies in an area nursing home, and serving dinner to vets at the local VFW hall. Second only to Memorial Day with the number of events.

 

[moolie]

Snowing this morning, extreme weather alerts for the highways around town, so winter is on the way. I don't think we'll get enough snow to stick past the weekend, but who knows. Heck of a drive just getting the kids the 3 miles to school.

How well is everyone prepared for winter?

We need to replace a belt on our Explorer and get the heater fixed (it's blowing in the back but we have no defrost/heat in the front) so hubs is busy reading the Chilton repair manual from the library again. Hopeful that he can fix both, the belt should be no problem but he's put in new parts to try and fix the fan in the past that didn't quite do it so we may need to take it in for repair.

Garden is long done, canning is done except for the meats and beans and convenience meals that I'll continue to do batch by batch throughout the winter months.

Just made the last of the indoor-ripened heirloom Roma and Sheboygan garden tomatoes into a lovely pasta sauce last night for dinner, and we'll polish off the last few tiny Yellow Pear tomatoes with salmon at dinner tonight.

Pasta Sauce: Quarter and cook down tomatoes, then run through food mill to remove skins and seeds and keep tomato puree aside. Sweat an onion and 5 stalks celery, chopped, along with 3 finely grated carrots and as many zucchini chunks as you like. Then add 1 pint canned hamburger (or 1 lb raw hamburger and brown). Return tomato puree to pot, add splash of red wine and a cup of tomato paste. I usually add 2 tbsp of honey or brown sugar for a bit of sweetness, salt and pepper to taste. Serve over hot cooked pasta of your choice!

 

[rathbone]

OMGoodness that picture in and of itself makes me drool. Wish I had some tomatoes to try to make the pasta sauce.

 

[moolie]

Thanks Rathbone

That was the last of the fresh ones

They look better in the bowl of water than they did sitting on the countertop--a few were getting a bit wrinkly because we picked them about a month ago.

But they all ripened at around the same time and made delicious pasta sauce--we got two yummy spaghetti dinners out of them!

 

[Marianne]

 

[Homemaker]

That pic of tomatoes is gorgeous. Food is just beautiful

 

[TanksHill]

Just stopping by to say hi!!!



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[moolie]

Thanks everyone

Hey Gina!

 

[moolie]

A request to anyone who is inclined to pray:

Could you please pray for R, a young man (16) who attends my church, he is a friend of my daughter's and plays drums in the worship band (daughter plays keyboard/piano).

R plays football at high school and recently suffered a concussion. He has been injured in the past, and now has severe amnesia/memory loss.

To the point that one day he woke up and didn't know his own family, home, how to read--super serious. This has been going on for two weeks now. He is starting to remember a few people, and has "got to know" his family again, but he can't be left alone during the daytime because he just doesn't remember anything.

He can take care of himself, personal needs etc., but just doesn't remember anything so his Mom has friends scheduled to be with him while she's at work during the daytimes (single mom).

His Mom is having a real hard time with not only having "lost" her son, but also dealing with his daily care. His sister puts on a brave face, but we know it is so hard to suddenly have a stranger in their home and to have lost the lovely gentle young man who was R. He was the "big kid" who had time for the little kids at church, and consequently they all hung off him (sometimes literally) during coffee time after Sunday service.

Please pray for God's will in his life. Of course we all want R back, and for him to remember again, but there is also the realization that God may have different plans for his life.

Thanks.