Christmas Long Long Ago

Memories are funny, triggered by the strangest things, a smell, a picture, so many things. I was thinking this week of some of the most memorable Christmas's of my child hood. I was born about the time of the war, in the early 40s. Money was tight, food was rationed, we practiced blackouts, and Dad worked at the bomb plant in Mead NE, which was likely a much more scary job than I would have known about back then. We did not do big Christmas affairs, we did have a tree and there were always gifts, mostly home made. From a new dress( Mom made) to a doll, retrieved from a thrift store, painted and a wardrobe created for it. Or a cloth doll, or dad got a hold of the rollers from the newsprint at the printing shop he worked at sometimes, and cut that roll into round blocks that he painted with bright colors. We had a sock, it always had an apple and an orange, some Good n Plenty's, and maybe a few whole nuts. But we were thrilled with those things, they meant the world to us. If kids today got something like that they would go ballistic. We were grateful for small things and quite happy and content with them. Gram Sharp always saw we had a new book. I collected the whole set of Bobbsey Twins over time. And family, we had family with us for a good meal. i can';t remember what we ate, so it was not likely a big turkey or ham dinner. More likely a big bowl of soup and a sandwich. But times were simpler, and happy. Kids could walk many blocks to school, we spent our days outside playing. Bike riding, roller skating, hopscotch, jacks. Nothing electronic. And we were seldom sick. You could go out in public and not worry about some disturbed person with a gun or a knife attacking and doing in a lot of people. Our politics were simpler too, most presidents were God fearing and based their rule on that. Life surely does change, and not always for the better. Sometimes I would like to go back and spend time with mom and dad again, just being together and warm and happy in our little house. I wonder what kind of memories our grand kids will have someday? Nothing like mine. I wish all my family and friends some of that warm fuzzy feeling from the past, hopefully happy thoughts and memories for you too. And maybe this year will be a better year, how I pray for peace on earth, understanding and caring for each other, doing things to help where ever possible. that's what we are here for, to care for our brothers and sisters and make life the best we can for everyone. Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year to you all.

Aromatherapy, Thyroid ideas, Jack fruit, what?

I am blessed with an amazing family. kids, sisters. grand kids, great grand kids and friends scattered through all the places I have traveled through along this journey called life. For a good many years I have been studying what we eat, what's in it, on it etc, and what it does to our bodies. Anything grown with GMO's is not good for anyone and we are slowly waking up to that fact. Dairy and meat products are next in line, full of anti biotics, inhumane practices, hormones that alter youngsters bodies, so much to think about. I quit milk and dairy products for the most part 40 years ago. And after all the scary recalls on hamburger and meats with ecoli etc, I stopped eating red meats and have only had chicken and turkey for some time. Organic. My Grand daughter has done some research on dairy and meat, and is now baking in her bakery with all plant based products. And she is teaching me a lot more. She found something called Jack Fruit. Its grown in south American countries, the trees get to 70 feet tall and bear 100 pounds of fruit a year. They might grow in southern Florida or California, or Texas, but no where else. The fruit is like pulled chicken or pork, and can be made into sandwiches with bar be que or adobo sauce or what you like. Amazing. Never too old to learn something new. Sea food has been on my hit list too, most of the things people eat are bottom feeders, living on the excrement of other sea creatures. Not appealing. Ok, moving on. There has been a lot of talk about candles, unless they are beeswax or soy, they are carcinogenic. I have been using misting fountains for about 15 years now, , and the new thing is a difuser. Into these you put essential oils, designed for what ails you. If you have sinus, colds, bronchitis etc you could use camphor oil and eucalyptus oils, smells like vicks and helps clear your lungs. I like a mix of lavender and vanilla just for calming and relaxing. Another blend for congestion is 3 drops of peppermint oil, 2 drops of eucalyptus oil, 2 drops of tea tree oil and 1 drop of lemon essential oil, mixed and added to your difuser. lacking that, you could put it in a pan and simmer it on your stove. If you crave a holiday scent, try cinnamon, cloves, spicy smelling oils. I recently purchased a new one from Piping Rock called Christmas, have it going today and love it. Using oils again, if you are having thyroid woes, to boost thyroid function mix 1 drop each of lemongrass, clove, myrrh and peppermint oils, difuse or simmer. Also massage into the adrenal area, Slow down an overactive thyroid, use 1 drop of myrrh, 1 drop of lemongrass and massage into thyroid area and on the bottoms of your feet. There are many place to get good oils, Mountain Rose Herbs, Piping Rock, Swanson Vitamins, and on and on. Even Amazon has a good supply. The fire in the Smoky Mountain Park is finally out. So much damage, 14 dead, thousands of acres burned, homes and businesses destroyed. All by a couple of kids, one 13, one 17 walking through the park tossing lit matches into the dry leaves. A tourist caught them on camera and thus they were apprehended. What an awful thing to do. Seems the whole world is responding, donations and help coming from all over. There are still an amazing amount of good people who are wanting to help their fellow man when trouble comes. It's getting close to Christmas, have my little tree up and music playing, and have baked a few cookies and made some truffles. Hope you are about ready too, what a great time to gather with family and be aware of how much we have, and that family is much more important than any gift under the tree. Give your family extra hugs and love this year. We all have much to celebrate. Merry Christmas!

Giving Thanks, Laundry soap changing weather

Its been nice and warm for late November, but with the warm, we have had no rain since August. There are so many fires burning in the south, right here in our area we have had one on Neddy Mountain, about 10 miles away that left us gasping with the smoke and setting off smoke alarms. This morning the first firefighter fatality was reported. We are blessed to have only had smoke, and woke to a light rain this am. Hope it does some good. Yesterday 22 new fires started, some folk already leaving their homes for safer places. It would be great to see all this end, and sadly, many of these fires were set, I never come to grips with people who purposely set out to hurt others. Not why we are here. As usual, I have so much to be grateful for, starting with my family, and of course a home I love, is paid for and suits me. We woke to a light rain this am, hope it does some good for the fires. The temps will be dropping all day, into the 20s tonight and for the next few nights, but then warming up to more seasonal levels. Hard to believe we have left summer behind and are now into the holiday season. I have been using a laundry soap that works well, smells nice and is super cheap. If you are tired of clogged plumbing and high prices, you might want to try this. In the laundry section of your store, find a 4 pound box of washing soda, and 4 pound box of Borax, each about $2.00. Then look for a bar of Fels Naptha soap. Mix the powders, and grate the bar of soap into them, stirring well. Store in a covered container and use a heaping tablespoon full for each load. Costs about 7 cents per load, should last about a year for small families. I made a half batch for myself, I don't wash that much. Want to make your carpet smell like the holidays? Mix up 1/2 cup of cornstarch, 2 cups of baking soda, 1 T or more of ground cloves, 1 bay leaf crunched, in a shaker can. I used to buy Parmesan cheese in big jars, and saved all those. They make excellent shakers. Don't buy them now as research shows they are stretched by adding sawdust to them. Better to buy a chunk and grate your own. It's dark and gloomy this morning but we do need rain so no complaints. The Earth now comes into her sleeping, restoring time, Not fond of winter but at least it's shorter here than a lot of places. I do hope you and your family have a lot of reasons to be grateful this year and will spend time with them. Happy Holidays and Good health to you all. s

My Blessed Life, and some good recipes for around the house

I was sitting here drinking my coffee a few days ago, looking up the mountain at the beautiful fall colors and thinking how lucky I am. Then I realized its not luck. I have been blessed from birth to today. The Bible says we are conceived by God before our parents conceived us. I was born into a Christian family, went to church from likely a few weeks old and lived among all my close relatives from the beginning. My grandad died the day I was due from pneumonia, I never got to know him sadly, I am sure he was a very special man. Mom and dad married and had moved in with her mom, so when I was born, I had 3 people to hug and cuddle and read to me. When mom's sister married, she and her hubby lived at Gram's too. Always a lap, a playmate and lots of love. We moved when my second sis was on the was and we ran out of room. But always close. We could walk to Great Grams, assorted cousins etc and when there was need in the family they were always there to help out. When I had polio, cousins Claude and Genevieve were first to come and help set up the bed and equipment I needed. Hospitals were full due to the epidemic. To this day, I am grateful for the life I have lived, places I have been and seen and the family I have. My kids have all turned out to be loving caring people, could not be prouder of them. And I have such wonderful grand-kids and even 2 great grand kids that are the best. One of those grandsons, Paul, put Pat's name on a wall at Wrigley field after the Cubs finally won this year, Pat would have loved that, he wanted that win all his life. Oh yes, I fell out of grace at times, when I was young and foolish but always came back and cling to what I hold dear in life. And yes I am opinionated about a lot of things. My upbringing taught me the Bible is always right, and we don't change God's word. So the things we are told we MUST accept are not what we were taught. I accept people for what they are, but the sins I do not. I do not watch shows on tv that use bad language, mom always said people that cussed had no skills with words and did not know better, and she was a teacher. I do not like blood and guts and violence, we are teaching our kids way too much of that. If I watch tv, its the stations that run the old stuff, Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, McHales Nave, Designing Women, and the few stations that carry family things, like Inspiration and Hallmark. Most of the time I have music playing, it calms and soothes and I love it. Have a good library of CDs, oldies and classical. I am very happy on this quiet Mountain, once again I have been led to a place I love. On another subject, I had some nasty scratches in my table legs and cabinets, hit them with my wheel chair a lot. So here is a great way to fix them. In a glass jar put 3/4 cup of oil, I use sunflower as it's not sprayed, and 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar. Shake. Use a paper towel to wipe onto the damaged areas, do not wipe off but do not apply too heavy, it soaks in and hides the bad spots. Can not believe how well it worked. I also made my first round of laundry detergent this week, a big box, 4 lbs, of washing soda, a big box of borax and a bar of grated Fels Naptha soap. Smells nice, works well, easy on plumbing and cheap, about 7 cents per load, use one heaping tablespoon unless very soiled , then maybe a tad more. It is much cooler now, think the days of 80s and 90s are over for a time. Looking forward to holing up and keeping warm for a spell. Socking up on beans, rice and shelf stable stuff in case we get stuck inside for a while. Hope you are well, and enjoying the changing seasons, be well.

Surgery, trips, safe hand sanitizer

What a crazy last week it was. With many thanks to my patient son Doug, who took me back and forth to Knoxville so many times I lost track. Had a cataract removed on a Tuesday, had to go back for a check up on Wednesday. The surgery went well but after it was over, we were stuck on the second floor as the power had gone out and the elevator was not working. So getting home was a little later than planned. The next day checkup was fairly fast but on the way home we got behind a long long line of traffic, we slowly moved until we got to an accident scene, that looked to involve several cars. All kinds of emergency vehicles were responding. So I spent a week sleeping with a shield over the eye, not real comfy, kind of made a lot of sweating. And eye drops,3 times a day, 3 kinds. So this week, one return trip that was a doozy, as I got out of Doug's car, I hit the switch for windows and locks. We were partly pulled into a parking spot but he stopped, and got me out of the car before pulling in as the space was tight. And then we realized I had locked the doors and the car was running with the key inside. Duh. Felt like an utter idiot. I went on in, by the time I was done, Doug had come in, he called AAA who happened to have a guy a block away who got the car open. Well, if that was not enough, when we left the office, we could not get out as someone had locked the door from the other side. There is a series of 3 doors across the building, and we were behind door number one. Another couple was there too, and Doug went around the building and let us all out. Whew. Finally home, have one more check up middle of next month. Not sure I want to do the second eye, such a hassle. The last few days I peeled, chopped and cooked pears into pear butter and sauce. Now I am getting back into a somewhat normal routine. The last few weeks the news has been running articles on using hand sanitizer and anti bacterial soap, they contain triclosan which is not considered a safe ingredient. The soap is being re formulated, but in the meantime if you think you need to use such and item, I have a recipe that is safe. Actually, good old soap is good, and better for you to use. But here is the recipe:10 drops of essential lavender oil, 30 drops of tea tree oil, 1 Tablespoon of witch hazel, 8 ounces of pure aloe vera gel, 1/4 teaspoon vitamin E oil. Mix all together and put in a pump hand soap container, Shake lightly before use. Its approaching Fall on the calendar but still in the 90s here. Time to start getting the yard ready for winter. Not my favorite time, cold is not my best thing these days. I will take the heat over that. But it will be nice to see some crisp temperatures, and fall leaves one of these days. The holidays will get together and roll past in a blur, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. Hope we all take time to enjoy the changes. take care, stay well.

Toxic Tomatoes

My very first blog was prompted by watching migrant workers picking green tomatoes here in Edwina TN. Why? Ripe tomatoes have the best flavor. Well, you can't ship them ripe or they will rot. So here is a tale of what I see in these fields. Early in spring, March, the fields are turned, long tunnels of plastic are installed with heavy doses of fertilizer under them, not sure whats in the fertilizer. Shortly, migrant workers plant tomato plants, grown from GMO seeds, into those rows. For the next few months, they are sprayed constantly with weed and bug killers. Its now August and the green tomatoes have been picked, packed and shipped. When they arrive at their destination, they are placed in ethylene gas chambers to ripen. Look up www.acadamia.edu/23211590. If a man were to enter that chamber while the tomatoes are ripening, the gas is strong enough to kill him. Its absorbed into the fruit. Then its sent on to be processed into all sorts of tomato products, ketchup, pizza and spaghetti sauces, marinara, and canned tomatoes of all types, from sauce and paste to diced and whole, and juice. A good share are packed into cans with white lining, butyl hydroxalated touethylene, also very toxic. And sent to you to eat. Now those fields are sprayed again, with something so potent, the tomato bushes and unusable to packers ripe tomatoes, literally thousands of them , are brown and crunchy in 24 hours. Signs are posted saying "If you eat these you will die" and then all that poison is turned into the ground, waiting for a new crop to be planted in it. If you start checking it out, you will ind that most produce is grown with sprays by the Big Six, Monsanto, Syngenta, Basf, Bayer, Dupont and Dow. These sprays are killing our bees, butterflies and us. Graphs have been done showing the direct increase in cancer, arthritis, allergies,Alzheimer, etc since these growing practices began, about 30 years ago. Before then, cancer in a child was rare, ADHD was not known, you get the picture. it's not that we need research to find cures, we need to stop eating what is causing all this. But that would be costly to the BIg SIx and Big Pharma and doctors who make a great living trying to treat these ills. And of course, insurance factors in. If we were not sick, how would they make money? When I started this study there were some countries banning these growing practice, now over 64 have done so and will not buy the U S 's GMO grown crops, in fact we are importing corn from other countries because folk are wising up and demanding better food. So our farmers are loosing pay checks. . I am going to give you a list of sites to look up to verify all this, and there are hundreds more, you can do your own research and learn just how badly we are being fed. Get smart, buy organic, it will change how things are done if we refuse the garbage we are now fed. Please do some looking and learning, and get healthy. We are destroying our planet and ourselves with greed. And here they are, good reading to you. naturalsociety.com/conventionalfood, www.ewg.org/agmag/2014, articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archives/2013/06/09/monsanto

Brew Your Own Anti biotic, to stay well this coming season

Hard to believe that school is back in session, and fall is not far away. When school resumes, bugs come home and germs get spread around. I have a recipe you need to start now as it takes two weeks to brew, but this is almost exactly what I have been making for coughs and colds for many years. So first, your need a quart glass jar, with a tight fitting lid. Into that jar put 1/4 cup of chopped garlic. 2 fresh hot peppers, chopped, the hotter the better, 1/4 cup of grated ginger, 1/4 cup of chopped onion, 3 tablespoons of honey , 1 tablespoons of powdered turmeric, 2 tablespoons of grated horseradish. Stir well, and add 3 cups or what fits in your jar leaving an inch of head space. Shake. Place in a cool dark area and shake daily for 2 weeks. Strain, put in clean jar, and take at least 1 tablespoon a day to boost your immune system and prevent colds, flu etc. Well worth the fixing time. I have a problem finding fresh horseradish but you can buy a jar of just horseradish, not made into a spread, in the condiment section of the store. The garden is slowing down a bit now, still getting zucchini and tomatoes, and a few cukes. The pear trees are loaded. In fact, they are so heavy, a branch fell onto my roof and into my Dish, disrupting my tv service. My son came down with his chain saw and took down the offending branches. The tree right at the back of my house grows very tall, 30 feet maybe, limbs that are very thin and can't support the weight of all the pears on it. Looks like a lot of pear butter will be made this fall, better go buy more jars. Our new kitten is so cute, even though my older cat is still hissing at it, we are making progress, boy, could I use some of that energy. She is like a whirling Tasmanian dervish. Makes me tired just watching her. She is still very young, about 10 weeks old now. It's Fair time, seeing a lot of them ongoing in the area,including one that injured three kids on one of the rides, so glad they are all improving, there have been too many accidents this year already. Be cautious. Hope you have the school shopping done and are getting ready to settle into the routine again, I do not have to go there now, but keep watch over my grandkids and great grandkids school progress. Bought my first Christmas gift, so have started the shopping for December. Have a great week, til next time, stay well.

Let's look at neuropathy

It's Friday,and not quite so peaceful here. I brought home a new tiny kitten last Monday, and my eight year old is not a happy camper. She is getting better but still growls at the newcomer. Will be glad when she accepts her as a friend. The new girl is Siamese mix, and talky, and very cute, loves to snuggle. Her name is Lilly. It's also still summer, warm and humid and we still lack rain we need, it's in the forecast almost daily but on a hit and miss basis. So my son in Nebraska has a sister in law that did an extensive amount of painting in her home and did some damage to her shoulder and neck. After seeing a doctor, she was diagnosed with neuropathy and put on pain pills, which don't do anything to help cure the problem and could end up causing an addiction to the pills. I have been reading a lot of articles on things that help, and also checked with my aryuvedic site. The problem is caused by decreased blood flow to an area of the body. Diabetics also fight with this problem often. There are 3 vitamins that can help circulation, all can be found at Swanson vitamins. The first is one my daughter and I have used for numb tingly hands when we were doing stuff that over used them, B-6. 50 mg will do , a day, and cost about $2.38a bottle. The next is L-Arginine, at $4.99 a bottle, and the third is Alpha Lipolic Acid, also at $4.99 a bottle, most of these are 100 capsules and will last almost 3 months, so quite reasonable. I also found an alternative medicine you can check out, called Nervestra. It says it soothes pain, increases blood flow and builds back nerve function. This is one you would want to check out carefully for yourself. There are other things that help too, massage, maybe acupuncture and eating Omega rich fatty acid foods. Like avocados, one of my favorites. I refilled my hand soap containers yesterday, 1/2 cup of water, 1/4 cup of liquid castile soap, 15 drops of lavender essential oil and 20 drops of tea tree oil. Easy. Lathers well, smells nice. Summer is coming to a close, the kids are back in school next week here. Some went back last week. Those three month long summer vacations we had seem to be a thing of the past. I like summer better than the cold of winter so am not in a hurry to see it end, and we will have more very warm weather in August, but after that winter is approaching. Six months til Christmas, have you started shopping? Have a good week, stay well.

Golden Calendulas

Doug has a lovely patch of calendulas in his garden, and has been picking and bringing me the golden flowers for a while now. First I dried them, then I soaked them in sunflower oil for 2 weeks and this morning, I strained out the resulting oil, added a bit of borax and beeswax and a healthy amount of essential lavender oil. Not that simple of course, takes heating gently several containers to the same temperature, them whipping them together til thickened slightly before pouring into containers. My sis recently was scalded and suffered some nasty 3rd degree burns which are healing nicely and this got me working on the salve, as it is known for relief from burns and itching. Need to get some mailed to her. Also learned a lot this morning from articles Doug has been studying about elderberries. I planted some last fall as buying the flowers and leaves is costly and they are what I make bronchitis tea out of for my daughter and sis. If you eat raw berries you can get really sick. They are almost like poison. My Gram grew them over her back porch, and made jelly and wine, and now I am told these grow to over 30 feet tall if not regularly clipped. Yipes. Maybe I could have a trellis built and make it into a garage for my car, with the berry bushes growing a shelter. They are right at the end of my driveway so hope they do not become a problem. We have finally been blessed with rain, and some minor storms, and wind, nothing bad at all, and it helps keep temperatures down plus the boon of not having to water the garden every day. The plants are thriving, rain water is so much better than hose water. We had a power outage night before last, lasted almost 3 hours, and it was warm enough to really miss the fans running. And dark. Power went off about 7:30 pm and was nearly 11 pm before it came back on. I am really addicted to radio, fans, lights etc, and you find out real fast when they are gone how much you miss them. For a while now I have put peppermint oil where I have little ants in the house, or put it on a cotton ball and refresh it every few days. Here is a spray you can use that makes it easy and of course is safe around pets, food, kids etc. In a small spray bottle, put 4 ounces of water and add 30 drops of peppermint oil, and 30 drops of clove oil. Shake and spray. Repeat as needed. If you drink soda of any kind that comes in big plastic bottles, cut the top third of the bottle off, put some of the soda in the bottom and invert the cut off top creating a funnel, sit outside where mosquitoes may be and they will be drawn into the container and unable to get out. I have seen this used with wasps etc too, but different liquids used to trap different bugs. Got a package in the mail this am, cat food for Libby. And of course, she likes the box better than the contents. It had brown paper packing in it which she has claimed to sleep on. Yesterday when I was shopping, the store was full of back to school displays and lists of needed supplies, only a few more weeks and the kids go back to class. Wow, that makes the summer feel like it is ending hardly before it began. Have a good week, be thankful for your blessings and good health. Til next time be well.

Grow your own Pain Relief

It's the first day of July, and hot enough lately to feel like it. I know its summer because I made my first small batch of dill pickles this morning. Yesterday I picked zucchini and last night I sliced them up and put them in ice water in the frig overnight.This morning I got jars ready, made the brine and canned them. So easy, in the sterilized jars put a clove of garlic, 4 peppercorns, and 1 head of dill or 1 teaspoon organic jarred dill. Pack in the drained, dried zucchini, add another clove of garlic and a sprinkle of dill seed, pour the brine, half water, half white vinegar and pickling salt over the top, put the lids on and process for 12 minutes. All sealed, and cooling on the counter now and the mess cleaned up. Good thing too, just opened my last jar from last year. These need a 3 week cure time and they will be ready. By then, there will be more. The vines are heavy with cucumbers and zucchini so will keep me busy. Most of the aches, pains and illnesses we suffer from are caused by inflammation in the body. And you can grow herbs that will ease those aches and keep your body inflammation free. Bet you never thought of Basil as one of them. You use the leaves of course, and its listed as anti inflammatory, antispasmodic and antiviral. Dry the leaves and use as a tea or make a tincture, a bit more complicated. Also relieves tension. And of course is good in lots of cooking areas. Black cumin is second,its an annual, and you have to harvest the seeds which have a peppery taste, you can toss them on salad, even put them in pancakes. You can make a tincture or just add the seeds to your food. If you want to make a tea, use 1 teaspoon of peppermint leaves, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cumin seed oil, available at health food stores, 1 teaspoon of honey and add a cup of boiling water to steep.Those are the easiest, and you know about ginger and turmeric. Been out and worked in the back yard a bit this am, yesterday was garden day. Takes a lot of water right now, the heat sure evaporates it out fast. No complaints, like this much better than winter. Somehow the older I get, the more I feel the cold. Can handle being warm much better. So here we are, looking at the fourth of July. Somehow, America has slipped and no longer feels like it did 20 years ago. We have lost so many freedoms, and the government does not seem to represent us now, it just hems and haws and makes big bucks at our expense. Sad. I miss the days of saying the Pledge of Allegiance, singing our patriotic songs, having a prayer in school to start the day, and its made a difference in how we live. I hope we can gain back the pride we had before all the terrorism, taking out of our rights etc . Planning a quiet day at home, gardening most likely. Hope your day is all you want it to be. See you soon.

Recipes, Rants, IDeas

Do we not elect senators and congressmen? Have they totally lost track of their job? They seem to always be taking vacations without deciding any major issues, get big salaries, amazing retirement benefits and yet do not take the job of representing us at all seriously. And they squabble like school kids, come on, work together for the good of the people, that is your job. If we did our jobs the way they do theirs, we would be fired. Not many years ago, hearing our national anthem, or reciting the pledge of allegiance made our hearts flutter with pride. But it seems now we are no longer the land of the brave and the home of the free. Oh yes, we have many brave people who do stick up for and protect us, but the freedoms our forefathers fought for are slipping away, like pulling the plug in your tub and watching the water go down the drain. If you are a white, Christian, straight person, the Good Lord forbid you say anything about anyone else. But those others can constantly pick at us and take away our freedom of speech and religion. Yes, I believe people have rights, but time was people came to this country because they wanted to become Americans, learn our ways, language and become apart of us. Not drag their country and their way of living here and push ours out. if we went to any other country in the world, we would go because we wanted their way of live, and we would not push our ways on them. Ok, feel better, just hate the way life is going, and fear for our kids and grand kids future, not shining and bright like it was in the past. It has been HOT lately, and the humidity makes it feel like breathing underwater at times. If you are suffering from allergies and headaches, here is a tea to help. 1 teaspoon of peppermint leaves brewed in a cup of boiling water for 10 minutes, strain and add 1 teaspoon black cumin seed oil( get this at Mountain Rose Herbs) and 1 to 2 teaspoons of organic honey. Sip and relax.You must know we are loosing our bees due to the GMO growing in our country, and that will mean down the line no pollination and loss of many crops. If you want to help encourage bees, plant some of these in your yard, yarrow, sedum, Rudbeckia, Lantana, goldenrod(yep) butterfly weed, asters, bee balm and even catnip. I found a neat pattern for a bee house, made of 4x8 inch pieces of wood, made into a box, filled with potters clay and holes punche 3/4 of the way back with a 1/2 inch pencil or dowel, my pencils are not that big so maybe a wood spoon handle. Put some screw hooks and a wire on top and hang in the yard. Son Doug has taken a long time foster dog to town this am for his journey to Jersey and hopefully a loving new home soon, will miss the big lug, he is a sweetie. Hope he gets a good home soon. Well, off to brew some iced tea and vacuum. Stay cool, see you soon.

Living in a Toxic World

Just a rough guess but maybe 80% of the stuff we use every day contains at least one and sometimes more toxic ingredients. Nail polish has Toluene, very harmful I found some natural water based from a company called Vita Cost, but it says to take it off with rubbing alcohol and that does not work. The only way I found is to peel it off, little by little. There are Parabans, and all manor of bad for your health things put into toothpaste, mouthwash, cosmetics soap, shampoo, it takes a lot of research to find things that are not going to do you some harm. Reading labels is imperative these days. My new Mother Earth magazine has a run down on some toxins, and where there are. I'd like to share it with you. Number 1 BPA . This is a hormone disruptor, linked to breast and prostate cancer, yep, guys are in danger too. If you are still buying non organic canned foods, and the lining of your can is white, that's the stuff. Try a different brand at least. Also found in water and baby bottles and cash register receipts. Might not want to keep those around. Number 2 is Phthalates. They are also cancer causing, hormone disrupting and linked to mental problems. Most often found in toys, flooring and cosmetics. Number 3 is Parabans. These are every where, shampoos, foods, personal items of all kinds, read that label. They are huge hormone disruptors, be cautious using them on kids, shampoo is prime. Number 4 is Formaldehyde. This one I have battled with since a child, get a nasty rash if I get near anything containing it, It is mostly a carcinogenic. Found in clothing, flooring and lots of common everyday things, again your soap and shampoo. Even flu shots, I finally was told to quit getting them after getting so sick for many years of having one. Doc figured it out, glad to know about that. And number 5 is flame retardants. These are linked to reproductive and developmental issues. For a time children's pajamas were treated, and other clothing but its also used in furniture making. These are just the tip of the iceberg, there are literally thousands of chemicals in our products, from clothing to personal care, to what our homes are built of. There are a lot of place you can research these, try safecosmetics.org for your personal care,for building materials try cpsc.gov/pagefiles121919. If you are looking for a particular substance, just put it in your search engine, tons of things come up. It's been very humid, making it feel much hotter than usual. We are not as bad as some places, but warm enough. Not complaining, much prefer this to winter. Got a lot done early, took the cat litter box, and the container I put the used litter into out and scrubbed them this am, all drying in the sun. Got a late start as I received my order of organic baking products yesterday and mad e a few cookies early. Sometimes ya just need a little dessert. Stay safe and cool, play in the hose with the kids and grandkids. Missing my little ones, Dad is back in school studying hard this summer. See you soon.

Your all natural home made drug store

Many of us have done our home work and realize how deadly OTC and prescription drugs are. The stuff for heartburn and reflux can destroy your kidneys, aspirins can cause internal bleeding, and now this week there are warnings about immodium. It's being used as a get high drug and killing people. That is of course and extreme example but will cause the stuff to become a behind the counter med, no longer on the shelf. Th ere are many things in nature that work well, and have no side effects in most folk. Let's talk about some of them. If you are suffering from a cold, or flu, avoid Sudafed etc. Echinacea is effective, used by taking 900 mg as soon as symptoms appear, once a day. Or garlic, an allicin which works like penicillin, can be used by just adding it to your diet daily to avoid catching colds. If you are coughing, a syrup can be made by mixing 1/2 cup honey(organic) with 1/4 cup of water 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of chopped sage in a pan over medium heat. Cook and stir for 10 minutes, strain, take as needed. This will keep in a glass jar for 3 months. Another idea is to put Vicks on your feet, put your socks on and sleep. My kids have used this on their babies for congestion and it works. If you don't want to buy commercial, make your own easily, by melting 1 part beeswax and adding 2 parts coconut oil and 10 drops of eucalyptus oil and 5 drops of camphor oil. . Pour into a tin. I use shea butter as I am allergic to coconut. This is so close to the real stuff you will not believe it. If you are having pain, there are alternatives for aspirin. Willow bark or feverfew pills are available at health food stores or on line, I go to Mountain Rose Herbs or my vitamin place, Swansons. THese work well with no side effects. Arthritis pain? try turmeric and ginger. I take these every day in capsule form, but you can make tea of the herbs too. Both are anti inflammatory and kill pain. Diarrhea? Ginger works here, or applesauce with a spoon full of carob powder. Or slippery elm. Heartburn? Best thing going is deglycerrized licorice. or DGL, chewable tablets. I get German chocolate flavored ones. They work fast and well. Constipation? Swanson has big containers of psyllium powder. Cheap. Thats whats in a lot of OTC stuff, but this is one simple ingredient, just add a spoon or two to a glass of water. My day starts with a glass of warm water, organic apple cider vinegar with Mother and a 1/2 teaspoon of psyllium every morning. Prevents the problem from the start. And to avoid diverticulitis, I add a spoon full of fresh ground flax seeds to my oatmeal. All these things work for most, one warning, if you are on meds for high blood pressure, avoid anything with licorice. It causes your medicine to not work well. I grow a good share of the herbs I use now, yarrow, mint, elderberry, all good for many things. Your computer is a valuable tool for searching for more information. I have a female cardinal that makes me laugh. She comes every morning and several times a day to look at herself in my rear view mirrors on the car. She pecks and scolds, She has brought her mate a few times lately. Wonder what they are thinking? It's comical to watch. Time to shut the house up, it's been very pleasant lately but we are into a period of very warm days, 90's. Will last til midweek next week then back into the 80s again. . Next time, we will get into the toxic world of cosmetics and personal products. Enjoy summer,see you soon.One final thought, a lot of these concoctions were taught to Settlers by the American Indians, and used by our old time folk who lived alo9ne on the prairies with no doctors to help. They did pretty well, and knew which herbs to use for different problems. Pretty smart folk.

STOP! Don't buy that. Yet.

There are a zillion people out there trying to sell us stuff. This will make you skinny, this will make your hair gorgeous, this will make you stop aging, this will remove wrinkles, etc, on and on. Well, I recently learned a lesson. Had been watching ads on tv , QVC and on my computer for a hair care line, WEN. I watched for many months before I bit., What a deal, you could get $139.95 worth of product for $39.95. So I ordered it. And soon had a huge box of stuff. I use shampoo and conditioner, but not all the other bottles, tubes and sprays in the box. And yep, first time I used it, my hair was soft, shiny and pretty. Kept on using it but in a few weeks, the drain was clogged with hair and my brush was full of hair every day. And then one morning o GMAu(ABC) there was a warning from medical experts saying this product was under fire, and being sued by many woman for hair loss. So I quit using it. Was going to flush it, but didn't want to get it in our ground water so ended up sending the containers to the dump. If this had been the end, that would have been good. But one day I got a huge box of products again and a bill for $139.99 to be taken off my credit card. Called the card folk and told them I had not authorized this bill and did not want to pay it. Called Wen and protested, asking to be removed from list and telling them I did not like the stuff. They said it was taken care of. But nope, not so, a month later yet another box of product was shipped and I was billed. Went through procedure again but this time demanded a letter stating I was no longer on their mailing list. Got it by e mail later the same day. Here's the deal. Never buy anything unless you go online, look for ingredients, results and mostly customer reviews, read as many of those as you can. They are so valuable. I learned my lesson the hard way, every one wants to sell you stuff, but its not all good stuff and it's up to us to protect ourselves from scammers, and even legit companies if there are things in those products that cause us grief. I recently bought pillows and spent weeks looking for the right one for me, and in the end got a good deal, but read a lot before I made the final decision. Did you ever watch a drug ad? Ask your doctor if you need "---". There are studies out now saying Prolia, given to post menopausal women with osteoporosis is not effective, and in fact does more harm than good. As do Nexium, Prilosec and those heart burn reflux meds. They damage your kidneys if you use more than just once in a while. Love watching the ads, and the side effects ending with "and death" at the end. So my point is, do some research, as much as you can, and find out if you really want something before you spend good money on it. Sadly, you can not rely on what anyone says these days, honestly is just not the policy.

Summer Time

I like summer, not fond of the cold winters. But the last week has been very warm, and the humidity is high. So getting out early to water and do yard chores is essential. The garden takes a lot of water, but is looking good., My cucumbers are blooming,have been picking some luscious blueberries, almost as big as grapes. And my son brings me enough lettuce for a weeks worth of salad, along with fresh green onions every week. I have some lettuce almost ready, due to rabbits, its growing in a deck railing planter . I also have pots on the deck with extra tomatoes, like yellow pear and roma's, so have a lot to keep track of. My family spent a lot of years in Texas, we never saw rain like they are having now. North Texas has snow storms as bad as the midwest, and dust storms that blew in red dust from Oklahoma. Many times we covered the windows with wet towels to keep it breathable for the babies when they were small. Today I am going to pass along some more ideas for your "green" home. Go to the store, and in the laundry area but a BIG box of baking soda, I get a four pound one. And at least a gallon of vinegar(white). With these, maybe a box of borax, some tea tree oil and a few essentials oils, you can do all your cleaning and yard chores in a non toxic way. Start with the toilet bowl, put 1/2 cup of baking soda in a flushed bowl, and add 1/2 cup of vinegar, let sit a few minutes til the bubbling stops, swab and flush. My bathroom cleaner is equal parts of water and white vinegar, a few drops of tea tree oil, and if you want a scent, add lavender, lemon or other essential oil. If you had not known, vinegar kills 99.98% of germs, as effective as caustic clorox, lysol etc and no fumes to inhale. Scouring powder came under fire this week, it contains formaldehyde among other deadly ingredients. Make your own with half salt and half baking soda, one of those old Parmesan cans works well as a sprinkler. Again, add essential oil if you want lemon or lavender etc scent. You can make soft scrub by using baking soda and mixing it with enough Dawn to make a cream. Moving outside, weed killer is as simple as putting 1/2 cup of salt in a spray bottle, fill with vinegar, add a squirt of dawn, and spray on a dry hot day. I also found out this week to watch out what brand of tea bags or tea you buy. Most of them use weed, and insect spray o n the leaves, and the first place it washes off is in your teacup. I buy great organic tea from Swansons. If you have not, go to their website and pull up organic foods, it's amzzing how much they have. And delivered right to your door. Getting ready to brew some peppermint tea, have a great week, see you next time.

Recipes and more recipes, repellants, cleaners and more

Spring left this week, the hotter more humid days have come. Not a bad thing, I enjoy warmer weather, not 100 degrees maybe but winter is not my favorite season. We are being warned that Zika mosquitoes are in our area, to take precautions when working outside. Seems skeeters hate lemon in any form. We have lemon balm growing in the yard, and I have lemon verbena in the house. Tucking springs in your shoes, pockets, hat brims and even creating a lei of the leaves to go around your neck is great protection. If you don't have any of these, you might try cutting a lemon and rubbing it on your skin before heading out. Picked up a tip for lip balm this week, if you make it yourself and want color, try powdered dried raspberries. We all are becoming aware that toothpaste and mouthwash have things in them that are not good for us. I am buying toothpaste for sensitive teeth from Swanson now, but mouthwash is simple to make. 2 cups of water, 5 drops of clove oil, 5 drops of cinnamon oil, 5 drops of peppermint oil, and 5 drops of lemon or tea tree oil, keep in a bottle , shake before use.. From Grit magazine, a recipe for fly repellent, lavender, basil or mint all work, tie in bundles and hang in areas that are prone to flies, inside or out. If you are unfortunate enough to suffer migraines, try 1 cup of water, one lemon, juiced, and 2 teaspoons of Himalayan pink salt mixed, stir, drink, ahh, relief. Got corn on the cob? Have you tried this? Cut off the stem end, wrap in two layers of wet paper towels(leave husk on) and lay around the edge of your microwave plate. Nuke 1 and 1/2 minutes, turn over, nuke 1 and 1/2 more minutes, let sit 5 minutes and just slide the husk, silk and all right off. Easy. I found a good recipe for tub and tile cleaner on one of my favorite sites, DIY natural. In a spray bottle, put 1 cup white vinegar, and 4 T dish soap, swish, then add 10 drops tea tree oil, 10 drops eucalyptus oil. A dark bottle is best for this . Shake well before spraying on tub, tile etc, let sit 10 minutes and wipe off with clean towel. And last, I love this for freshening up carpet, it won't clean much but sure makes it smell nice. !/2 cup of cornstarch, 2 cups baking soda, 1 T ground cloves, and 4 leaves of crumpled Bay. Mix in a shaker can and sprinkle liberally over carpet, let set one hour, then vacuum as usual. I have old Parmesan containers that work really well for this kind of mix. In fact since I learned that Parmesan is laced with wood shavings to stretch it, I have quit eating it. Buy a chunk and grate it yourself so you know what you are eating, I can almost taste the wood now that I know about it, dumped out my last round. Been out early this am watering, cleaning the bird bath and enjoying the cool morning before the heat starts. Hope you are having great weather where you are, so much bad stuff right now, tornadoes, floods etc. Have a great Memorial day week end, see ya soon.

Help your diet help you

Your diet always needs your help to keep you well. The more studies that are being done, the more processed foods and junk foods, and fast foods are coming under fire. You need to eat rainbows. The brighter the color the better. Watermelon, blueberries, kiwis, greens, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes instead of white ones, and most whites are grown with a ton of spray, so not healthy. It's finally becoming evident that all the sprays are making us the nation of cancer, arthritis, allergies and Alzheimer's among other ills that plague us. But it will be a long time before major changes are made as the GMO crops are making big bucks for so many, even funding Hillary's campaign. She is promoting them on that account instead of being aware of health needs of our country. This political campaign has been the nastiest I can remember, and neither candidate seems to me to be honest, or caring or reliable. What happened to presidents like Lincoln, Washington etc. Those who knew our country was founded on religious beliefs and needed to follow them. Politics aside, they just make me crazy these days. On the rainbow, be sure to add whole grains that are organic, like quinoa, millet, wild rice. And oh, this morning on Facebook I see China is making plastic rice, yuck. Don't buy that. Did you know that 6 million kids die of diseases that could be treated for the cost of a cup of coffee every year? How sad. Using steroids or antibiotics for respiratory infections? Here is a better way, call 800-991-7088 and order Respiratory Relief, or go to mynaturesrite.com to order, this stuff kills bacterial inflections without harm to the patient. You can control allergies by following a healthy diet and healing your gut, taking away inflammation. Requires a lot of work, but better than meds. If you are taking stuff for reflux, heartburn etc, be aware of the side effects. They weaken your gut, and will cause kidney demise. Because they take out your first line of defense by making your gut weaker and weaker until all your good bacteria get out of balance. Adjust your diet, eat smaller amounts at night and quit eating 5 hours before bedtime to help. Found a new smoothie recipe I really like, 1 cup of plain organic yogurt, 1/2 cup fresh blueberries, or frozen ones, 1 small carrot chunked up, 2 T oatmeal, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1 Tablespoon of honey. I did find it a bit thick and had to add a tad of soy milk to make the blender work. But its goooood. Spent yesterday in and out of the house, working on flower beds and garden, need to go back out before the day is over and sweep the debris off the porches, had a guy come clean the gutters this week. Now maybe the dirt won't wash out of the beds all the time. And wonder of wonders, no snakes, toads, frogs or salamander were under all the rocks and leaves I cleaned up. Yea. It's been cool, I like it, no need for heat or fans, just start out with long sleeves and slippers and socks, and shed them as the day warms up. They say we are due a really hot summer so I am enjoying this long spring time. One last spring cleaning recipe, if you have mold on the north side of your house or other buildings, mix 1 cup white vinegar, 1 cup water and 1 teaspoon of baking soda in a spray bottle, spray liberally on mold, do not wash off, first rain will clean it all up for you. And it keeps it from coming back for a long while. Have a great last week of May, sure went fast. Stay well.

Blackberry Winter, and more recipes

Well, the weather has presented its own roller coaster lately, its been chilly enough the last few mornings to go hunting for long sleeves, sox and slippers again, but today should be the last cold for a while, back in the 80's by tomorrow. Yesterday we got a brief hail storm tossed in just to make it interesting, stuff bigger than a pea but smaller than a marble, made noise mostly. Had a good bit of rain along with it. It is doing the gardens good, things are growing nicely. Rain is ever so much better than watering. Our well water is hard, lots of minerals, and better than no water but the rain is welcomed. Saw a report on the news this week saying that the third leading cause of death in this country is mistakes made by doctors. That is totally scary, you feel like you have to trust them if you are going to them and yet they are prescribing wrongly and operating the same way and the stats on the number of deaths is really off the wall. I prefer taking care of my health and using my own home made remedies for things. When my sis had shingles, a salve made with hot peppers was given her, why would you want an irritant when you are already hurting? Makes little sense. She had good luck with my pine needle salve which is very soothing. About time to brew up a new batch. For a long time I have been making cough syrup from fresh ginger, horseradish, herbs and onions and garlic. It takes 8 weeks to brew, so not something available if needed in a hurry. Here is a recipe for some you can make and use right away: 1 cup of fresh pineapple juice, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, 1 piece of ginger, about 1/2 inch, grated, 1 tablespoon of organic or raw honey and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper powder. Mix all together and use as needed, up to 1/4 cup at a time, 3 or 4 times a day. This does seem to work too, if you have Hemorrhoids and can not get to a store, soak a cotton ball with apple cider vinegar, place and leave on overnight. This is for external ones, if you have internal ones, in a small flat container freeze the vinegar and cut into slivers you can insert into the anus. Might need a drip catcher to save your undies. Also drinking a Tablespoon of vinegar in hot water every day may help prevent and cure the problem. This one I can't check as I am allergic to coconut, but mixing turmeric powder and coconut oil into a past and applying with a cotton swab is supposed to whiten your teeth. If anyone tries this let me know results please. Did you know you can easily make your own powdered sugar? Just put a cup of organic sugar and 1 teaspoon of corn starch in your food processor and whirl until powdered. I am not using corn starch as its too processed, almost all corn is GMO these days, I have gone to arrowroot instead. My peonies are blooming, the snowballs rapidly fell apart, rain really took those out. Hope all the mom's out there have a wonderful mother's day, I am blessed to have 4 remarkable kids, making every day Mother;s Day. Love them all, makes me realize how lucky I am. God had a most important hand in that venture, no complaints at all. Have a great week, stay well.

Spring Cleaning with Natural Products

Sitting here this morning early, with coffee in hand, watching the sun rise behind the mountain. Well sort of, its cloudy this morning but there is still a glow as the sun creeps into the sky. Behind me is a steep incline to the top of Piney Mountain, my son's work shop sits about half way up. In the winter I can see the top of the mountain through the bare trees, but now they are all green again so only looking at the tops of the trees can I see the top. It takes the sun a long time to come over the mountain, if I go to town early, it's already up as I get away down the hill. God has put me in a truly breathtaking place to spend the last of my life. I have been lucky to see a lot of places, some great, others not so much. Today I got a newsletter from Mountain Rose Herbs with some great cleaning recipes. If you are still buying harsh chemical products, I urge you to consider going green and natural. These ingredients clean as a well as clorox, and other caustic products, and are so much safer for you, your kids, pets and the environment. Lets start with a general surface cleaner for kitchen counters, cabinets, glass, blinds, tubs, fan blades etc. In most grocery stores you can purchase spray bottles for just over a buck, I found mine at Walmart. You can also clean and reuse old glass cleaner spray bottles, just be sure all the old stuff is removed. okay, Surface Cleaner: 16 ounce spray bottle 8 ounces white vinegar 6 ounces water 2 ounces vodka or rubbing alcohol 10 drops essential lavender oil 5 drops essential rosemary oil 5 drops essential lemon oil. Combine all in spray bottle shake before use On to soft scrub, for your sinks, tubs, toilets etc glass jar 1/2 cup baking soda, 1/2 cup liquid castile soap, 15 drops of essential oil, like rosemary, tea tree or your choice. Mix well, apply to paper towel or cloth and scrub away, rinse well. Have you used Febreze? I was told by a vet many years ago it may be toxic for pets, had a kitty get sick and she thought that was the cause. Well, here is a home made version that won;t harm a thing: 16 ounce spray bottle, 3 ounces vodka or rubbing alcohol, 15 drops lavender essential oil. 12 ounces rose hydrosol. Put in your bottle, shake and spray curtains, rugs, furniture, pet beds, cars upholstery etc. I ran across an article in my new Mother Earth on blood sugar, if you are working with that problem, did you know that dandelions are most helpful? They contain alpha-glucosidaze, which is natures blood sugar reducer. You should check with your doc of course, but a tea made with flowers and leaves can reduce the amount of medication needed. It's finally spring, almost summer, we seem to jump from that lovely cool period right into very warm weather. My garden is mostly up, have beets, St. Francis beans, cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, lettuce and herbs doing well, also potatoes and my berries are looking good, both strawberries and blueberries are getting ripe. Love this time of renewal, when the earth once again becomes green and lush. Hope you are taking time to enjoy and not just stress out from yard wor, all too soon winter will make its return. Enjoy the weather, and your life, and give thanks for all your blessings. Til next time, be healthy. Final note, all ingredients need for cleaning recipes can be found at Mountain Rose Herbs, and most of them also at Swanson Vitamins, or Amazon.

Castile Soap and Chamomile

Sometimes the simplest things are the best, and cheapest. If you are trying for a healthy home, these two items are your friends. I have a large bottle of Castile soap, purchased from Mountain Rose Herbs, in my cupboard. I use it in foaming face wash, shampoo, and other home made personal items. Its simple to use,To make an all purpose cleaner, combine 1 gallon of hot water with 1/2 cup liquid Castile soap and 10 drops essential thyme oil. Spray on cupboards, sink, tubs,any surface you need to clean., If you have pets, make a shampoo that repels fleas with Castile and peppermint essential oil, bugs hate peppermint. Just keep it out of eyes and nose. Add a few squirts of Castile to 2 cups hot water to clean up greasy stove tops. Using Castile instead of normal disinfectants can help ease allergies, it will take a few weeks to see improvement as you need the toxic stuff you have been using to get cleaned out. Living in a clean , green house is so good for your health. Chamomile has long been used as a relaxing tea, to aid in sleep. But its good for ulcers too, and tummy troubles, very soothing. Steep a cup of chamomile blossoms in 2 cups boiling water, strain, cool and use as a hair conditioner, do not rinse out. It will leave your hair soft and slightly lighter. If you have puffy eyes, steep some flowers and make small compresses to put under your eyes, while relaxing a short time.Its also good for itches, scrapes and burns, can use tea or make salves and lotions, recipes easy to find on line. Amazing how going back to old remedies can improve our lives. I watched a spot on ABC news a while back saying lots of folk are getting tired of the side effects, cost and inconvenience of prescription meds, so they are looking for holistic, and alternative doctors who can use both, and keep your side effects at bay. Seems our grandparents knew a lot more than we gave them credit for. Back on the prairie, docs were few and far between and pioneers needed a good basic knowledge of herbal care. Even the Native Americans had a good handle on growing and using herbs, tree roots and bark etc. It kind of seems the farther we progress, the less healthy we are. It's trying to be spring, the dogwoods are lovely, the red buds are about gone, but my snowballs, tulips etc are so pretty. We have been in an area this week with 3 forest fires burning very close to us. We ate our share of smoke for a day or two, but the fire is burning away from us and up another mountain now. It's splitting so they are still using helicopters to drop water, last report said we had an extra 130 firefighters brought in to fight this giant blaze, We could use a good soaking rain to help get all these fires out. Hope you are having a lovely spring, enjoying some warmer days and the flowers that are now appearing. I am waiting for my little hummingbirds to return, love watching them. Take care.

OK, go ahead and hate me

I was brought up in a different age. My parents took me to church, taught me respect and I knew they could see anything I did even if I was 100 miles away from them. We walked to school alone at the age of 5 or 6, knowing not to get into a car with anyone we did not know etc. And our parents were not in trouble for letting us do this. Cursing was a sin, I still can not abide any one who spews out a curse word every other word out of their mouth. It shows a lack of knowledge of good words and proper speech. I also can not stand the new tv shows. They are so full of deviate sex, violence, murder, blood, no wonder we have created the world we live in. The news media adds to this by repeating over and over all the stories featuring mass murder and violence. Of course its copied. We grew up watching Andy Griffith, Petticoat Junction, The Waltons, Night Court. Last night I watched a Night Court episode that touched on death and disability in a wonderful way, I laughed all the way through it. I will not watch any show that promotes gay marriage, God says that is an abomination. And I know that my life has to be lived according to God's teachings or I have no hope of getting to that Kingdom he is preparing for us. Oh sure, I am a sinner, but God forgives if we ask, and more, he forgets the sin. We just have to ask Him to point us in the way he wants us to go, and do our best to go there. My folks picked up a switch or a razor strap once in a while, we were not abused or beaten, just disciplined. And having boundaries is important. If we goofed at school and got a ruler smack from the teacher, it was reported to our parents who followed it up at home with another smack. We survived, we respected others, and their property, and are still following those rules. Bring up a child in the way he should go, and he will not forget it. Not an exact quote, but close, and yes it's Biblical. I am fortunate enough to have brought up my kids the way I was brought up, and they are all wonderful, caring, useful humans, always out to help others. Too bad this generation is not the same. There are, I am sure, some wonderful young ones out there, there will always be parents who follow rules and convictions. and raise solid citizens. But there are many more who just don;t care. I feel sorry for these kids, what a poor way to grow up. So I will be accused of being narrow minded, not accepting, whatever. Yes. I am that way. I can accept the sinner, but not the sin. I can not judge. I keep trying to make sense out of life, but the best I can do is ask for God's help, and stay true to my roots. And so I choose not to watch news, tv shows that offend me, and other stuff that just makes me crazy. There are good stations, like Hallmark, Inspiration, FETV that show the old shows that taught morals and were truly funny at no one's expense. Hang me out to dry, I am done.