Thank You

Memorial Day 2012

Sunday's Psalm--Pentecost Sunday

Lord, send out your Spirit, 

and renew the face of the earth.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
the earth is full of your creatures;

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may the LORD be glad in his works!
Pleasing to him be my theme;
I will be glad in the LORD.

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

If you take away their breath, they perish
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

Skywatch--historical contrast of technology

I just had to get back into the habit of Skywatch. I took this last month on our outing to Palouse Falls and the one below a couple of years ago south of Goldendale.

SkyWatch Friday

Headbangers--my theme: food

Well, I will be busy from early tomorrow morning chopping, baking, browning, simmering, as it is the day that I treat all my volunteers to a spaghetti feed to thank them for their hard work all year. Since it was my turn for a headbangers theme, "FOOD" seemed to be just the ticket for the day.

Since pictures of me cooking spaghetti will not be available when the header is due, I pored over my files to find some great meals and found a few of interest. This was us being treated to a feast by our son's Turkish friends in Siberia.

I think I will present this bowl of cioppino as the header photo. It is not only a great picture and a delicious meal, but also healthy.

...unlike this one. But notice that we did share it among five of us.

This was the first one I chose. You have to start them out right. Sasha did a good job of preparing the corn on the cob for the coals.

I will take my camera along tomorrow and have my friend get a picture of the spaghetti chef.

If you would like to join us in our weekly header challenge, just give a holler at one of us, and check out what the others have done with the Food theme by clicking their links in my sidebar.

Summer is on the way

Sunday's Psalm--Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 

a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

All you peoples, clap your hands,
shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy:
 a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy;

the LORD, amid trumpet blasts.

Sing praise to God, sing praise;

sing praise to our king, sing praise.

choir practice

 God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 
a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

For king of all the earth is God;

sing hymns of praise.

God reigns over the nations,

God sits upon his holy throne.

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 

a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

A Skywatch Puzzle

While we were exploring the cindercone at Newberry Volcanic National Monument, I was only a bit interested in this vapor trail as a plane approached from the north. Lovely view, but the vapor trail was not all that unusual. In fact, I didn't even compose the picture to feature it--just a "Here it comes".

When I turned toward the south after a moment and saw the "There it goes." I found that puzzle I mentioned. I do not have an explanation for the dark line that is ahead of the trail. Do you?

It could have been an Odd Shot. But I cut back a while back on participating in some of the memes, and suspended the Odd Shots on Monday again. Things are settling down into a routine again, and I may be back with Skywatch and/or Weekend Reflections more regularly.

But does anyone have an answer to my Skywatch puzzle?

Headbangers Challenge--Trees

I chose this tree to edit to fit my header in response to the headbanger theme presented by Tom. There are only four of us Headbangers at the present time. We would love for you to join us as our optimum number is six. We post a new header according to a theme each week, and vote as to our favorite interpretation of the theme.
The question given us with the tree(s) theme was What kind is it and why did you choose it?

My answer to the first question is, I don't know. And I can't run out and check it out because this tree is in Yorkshire, in the Northumberland National Park, along the route of Hadrian's Wall.

And I'm not.


We visited the UK two years ago this summer, starting with a couple of days in Edinburgh, then a week hiking in the Scottish Highlands. When we left Scotland and headed south into England, we hiked along a portion of Hadrian's Wall.

The wall was ordered built by Roman Emperor Hadrian  in  AD 122  to mark the northern extreme of the Empire. It was a defense against those crazies from Scotland (my husbands ancestors?)




Ruins of the wall and some of the fortifications along it stretch from west to east from Carlisle to near Newbury on Tyne. You can visit by bus, or hike the entire thing--almost 90 miles (from memory, and coincidentally about the same distance as the Wonderland Trail which circles Mt. Rainier. Research shows the wall is slightly shorter.) We took the bus to one stop and hiked to Housesteads--one of the forts--to get the bus back to our train.

The wall goes through Yorkshire farmland, life being lived, in the midst of history.

As we traveled along the wall we came upon this tree:

No one said the hike was level.

This tree, I think maybe it is an oak, stands next to one of the wells from the original settlements of the area. 

I almost went back. Heights (as much hiking as I do in the mountains--you may find it hard to believe) give me pause. I am glad that Himself was not the photographer or you would likely be treated to the method of my descent instead of his.

So why did I choose this tree for my header despite all the lovely trees in our arboretum and those in our Northwest forests, or the forests we visited in Alaska or Siberia? I guess the answer to that one is also "I don't know."

It is historical. It is a reminder of a fun time before the current medical stresses.

And I just love the way this picture came out.

ABC R is for...

Road Trip

 We went on a road trip this weekend to Central Oregon to scout out campsites for when we have our Cousin Camp next month. We are still working out specifically where to go, as we should have made reservations much earlier.

Although Washington's Cascades have a few higher mountains, Oregon's Cascades have more peaks that rise to make a great snowcapped view from east or west. Here are some of the sights along the road.

Mt. Bachelor is a premium ski destination in the winter.

The ones on the right partly hidden by the trees are the Three Sisters.

I think that that is Mt. McLaughlin behind Black Butte.

 ABC Wednesday

Sunday's Psalm--Sixth Sunday of Easter

The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.

All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.

ABC Q is for...

Q is for...

Q can be hard.

Well, not as hard as X. I could go Q is for quilts but I have used that before

--even for a whole round of ABC Wednesday.

So now I face another Q and will not do quilts.

Q is for questions. 

Do you have any questions? 

Put them in the comments* and I will see if I have any answers.

If you have a four year old in your home, the question most asked is probably:

Why?

Some recent questions that I have been asked:

Having been given the information sheet with complete details of what children are to wear for First Communion. "Boys should wear dark pants and a white shirt, with or without tie."

I have been asked:

"What should my boy wear?"

"Can my boy wear khaki slacks?"

"Can I wear my tuxedo?" "Should I wear a suit?"

My answer to the last two questions is, "if you have one you can wear it. But don't go out and buy a suit, because the next time you will want to wear it will probably be for your wedding, and it won't fit."

*Blog questions:

My comment notice asks that commenters not ask Blog help questions in my comments. I have the privilege of being asked by Google to be a Blogger Top Contributor.  I answer blog help questions at the Blogger Help Forumwhen the question is about something I can help with. I don't answer them in my comments. That is an invasion of my blogspace, and is spam. I will mark such questions as spam.

Headbangers Theme--Doctors and Nurses

Chris (Gailsman) sent out the new theme with this note:

"The theme for next week is - 'doctors and nurses'. You should all have some fun with that one."

Sorry, Chris. Doesn't sound so fun here.

But wait, I think that maybe in this entire week there are actually no appointments.... Nope, wrong. Nephrologist on Friday.  Family doc last week. Finished with the gastro-enterologist for a bit. Ophthalmologist said no need for a further follow-up. Cardiologist on a quarterly (or is it half-yearly?) call-back. (Now consider: how may -ologists can one visit in one round of health issues?)  Oncologist-hemotologist  next week. She should have the details about the next steps in preparing for the two months with the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance this summer for stem cell transplant.

And then there are the nurses--one reflected with the IV stand in the shiny floor of the infusion room at North Star Lodge, Yakima's cancer care center. There's Rhonda and Christine and Joyce whose kids I taught. And there's another Christine, and Sue and Julie and another Joyce and, oh, what is her name? and hers?

Then there's Laurie, the pharmacist who has been way beyond helpful. And Michael who is not a doctor or a nurse either, but teaches relaxation. And the volunteers who help with blankets, pillows, snacks, and anything one might need to be comfortable.

(And I am not even the patient, just support  for my husband who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma just about a year ago.)

Doctors and Nurses, and those others -- I honor and am grateful to them all.

But no, I wouldn't use the word fun.

~~~
Chris and the other headbangers are listed in my sidebar. Visit them for more upbeat interpretations of the theme. They will have their headers and posts about them up on Wednesday.

Sunday's Psalm--Fifth Sunday of Easter

I will praise you, Lord, 

in the assembly of your people.

I will fulfill my vows before those who fear the LORD.

The lowly shall eat their fill;
 

they who seek the LORD shall praise him:
 

"May your hearts live forever!"
  

I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.

All the ends of the earth

shall remember and turn to the LORD;

all the families of the nations

shall bow down before him.
 

I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.

To him alone shall bow down
all who sleep in the earth;

before him shall bend
all who go down into the dust.

I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.

And to him my soul shall live;

my descendants shall serve him.
Let the coming generation be told of the LORD

that they may proclaim to a people yet to be born
the justice he has shown.
I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.

ABC P is for...

Palouse Falls

We had never been to Palouse Falls in Eastern Washington, and when a perfect spring picnic day appeared on recent Sunday so we went. It's only a couple of hours away. The falls is at its best in the spring.

When we got to the Palouse Falls State Park about ten, there were only a few visitors. This changed as the day went on. It is a destination for the motorcycle crowd, as well as other outdoor seekers.

The hikers on the trail give a good perspective of how big this falls is. If memory serves, it is 198 feet.

Powerful!

Flora and Fauna of the area. Not sure what the plant is in the fall, but the seed pod is charming.

This guy is a relative of the marmot, groundhog,  and woodchuck. We have called them rockchucks in the past, but that could be a local name from the kids.

And this is the view downstream of the falls.


ABC Wednesday Round Ten, the letter P

Headbangers are back: Public Transport

I live in a rural area where there is not a great deal in the way of public transport. There is a bus that comes into town, and a van service for low income elderly, but nothing to really get a photo of. So when IMac gave us the theme of Public Transport I was glad of the hiatus to give me time to think.

I thought of one of the special means of transportation in our region, the Washington State Ferry System.

 The ferries provide a quick trip across the Puget Sound to ports on the Kitsap Peninsula. They are a popular commute--about 30 minutes to Bremerton and 25 to Winslow, as well as several other routes. This one is ready to load at the Pier 52 Ferry Terminal in Seattle. Coming in to Seattle, you catch a view of Quest Field and Safeco Field ("The Safe") -- homes of the Seattle Seahawks and the Seattle Mariners, respectively.

When you get off the ferry

and cross the road toward

the city, you might get a

chance to take the streetcar

along the waterfront.

Where else have I had a chance to see some interesting Public Transport? I decided to look through my album of photos from my trip to India twelve years ago to see if I had a good example of what we found there. On several occasions we traveled in hired taxis or vans, so we did avoid some of the styles of travel used by the locals.

We did see some bullock carts with more passengers and less merchandise. And we did see some motorbikes with even more passengers than this one.

And finally, in the city, we got a chance to ride in one of these little three wheeled autorickshaws.

My favorite Public Transport, though, is probably the system of red double decker buses we found in England and Scotland when we visited two years ago. Why did they always seem to line up in groups of three? I read somewhere about a copyright case about a certain photo of three red buses in a row. Believe me, I took these myself in London, and would not do a photo of three buses in a row if they didn't line up like that so often.

 I just recounted. There are actually five in a row here.

 And only two in this shot.

The shot I chose for the header is also transport in Britain, starring our own Imac and his wife Julie parting by bus to return home after our day of photoshooting and visiting in Lincoln.

The Headbangers are back, and you can check what the others have done by clicking their links in my sidebar. We are still down one or two, so if you would like the challenge, get in touch with one of us to get the details.