CatHouse Chat

Because the New Year must be celebrated with CATS!

moar funny pictures
moar funny pictures

But, since it's New Year's, I'm sure we'll be doing plenty of this (except not invisible...):

moar funny pictures

How to live like a Christian, part 2....

OK, now that the other post has been published after languishing on my hard drive for over a week (and, of course, THAT was two weeks ago... what can I say? Life's been busy!), I can conclude Ephesians 4, and get a start on chapter 5. We'll begin in chapter 4, verse 29, which is a very hard verse, particularly for me...

Hm. Well, actually, they're ALL hard, LOL, which is why the grace of God is so abundant. There is a reason, you know, for the saying "Living the Christian life isn't hard, it's impossible!"

*IS* China the upcoming economic giant?

Apparently not. Very intriguing article...

China, it turns out, isn't a $10-trillion economy on the brink of catching up with the United States. It is a $6-trillion economy, less than half our size. For the foreseeable future, China will have far less money to spend on its military and will face much deeper social and economic problems at home than experts previously believed.

What happened to $4 trillion in Chinese gross domestic product? [...]

The political consequences will be felt far and wide. To begin with, the U.S. will remain the world's largest economy well into the future. Given that fact, fears that China will challenge the U.S. for global political leadership seem overblown. Under the old figures, China was predicted to pass the United States as the world's largest economy in 2012. That isn't going to happen.

Also, the difference in U.S. and Chinese living standards is much larger than previously thought. Average income per Chinese is less than one-tenth the U.S. level. With its people this poor, China will have a hard time raising enough revenue for the vast military buildup needed to challenge the United States.

Very interesting! Of course, the article talks about the readjustment made in the statistical formulas, which makes me a bit skeptical (I'm not numbers-minded, remember?), but it's a good read.

NINTH most influential in Virginia?!

Well. Cool!

CHC ranked at 9th most influential in VA blogosphere for the week ending Dec. 30, 2007. Definitely a nice New Year's present - but it must have been due to the Carnival of Christmas... (it certainly wasn't due to my computer issues!)

Actually, it's pretty good to see that half of the top twenty are ODBA blogs, too!

Fingers cautiously crossed...

The Beloved Husband (told you he is a genius!) has gotten my laptop up and running again - and it appears that somehow he's fixed the issue which made the poor thing run so grindingly slow. We're going to let her run on XP Home for a bit while we re-re-back up my hard drive and figure out just how we want to handle the VMware/UBUNTU emulator for LiveWriter, iTunes, and a couple of other programs exclusive to *blech*Windows*blech*.

I LOVE MY GENIUS HUSBAND!!!!

Computer woes...

Well, this is the second - or is it third? - day that my Sony Vaio laptop, the "new" one (it's about 3 years old), is hard down. And when I say "hard down," I mean it! The Beloved Husband is wrestling with bringing it to a point where he can strip off the Microsoft Operating System (not Vista, the one before [ed. - Oh, yeah, "XP Home" blech]) and install UBUNTU on it.

Basically, I have had it with Microsoft!

Of course, MSoft does have some redeeming programs - I like Live Writer for blogging, and I like their instant messaging system... But the rest? Pfft! At this point, I wouldn't care if the company imploded in the next 5 minutes!

He's going to also install a VMware program so I can run Windows in a small partition - for programs like Live Writer and iTunes for which I haven't found satisfactory equivalents (yet) - but this it it for me: no more Windows torture!

Unfortunately, this means that I'm going to be without a significant portion of data at my fingertips: mainly my music library. The Beloved Husband backed up my hard drive last night, but for some odd reason, we're not seeing all my tunes. *sigh* Well, he's a computer genius - and has a fair portion of sheer cussed determination - so we'll get it figured out (er, or he will!). I just hope it's in time for me to record a full show for Sacred Hideaway on Radio CIA next week.

At any rate, my old Vaio has been given new life. It's a PCG-V505DP (and do you believe the prices at those two links? They must be cached pages...), and about 5 years old. It passed from me to the Darling Munchkin, and was rattling around the house, unused, when the Munchkin got her own Dell for her birthday last spring. The Husband stripped off the MSoft OS, and installed UBUNTU, and it's like a new machine! Of course, the battery is pretty far gone (if I get 20 minutes not plugged in, I'm lucky), and the AC connection had been re-re-re-engineered so many times that it looks like something out of Buckaroo Banzai, but it works!

So, if you've got any old computers laying around, you might want to consider giving them a new shot with the Linux/UBUNTU Operating System... Less issues with security problems, lighter, faster, more efficient... and it's all open source, which means it's pretty much FREE! Yes, there is a learning curve as you adjust to the slightly different look and logic to the system, but it's not so drastically different that it's a nightmare - it's more the "OOoooo, look! Shiny... NEW!" sort of reaction ;-) .

Love UBUNTU.... UBUNTU good... UBUNTU rocks the world...

Yes, I do believe I'm a convert, LOL!

Ham Soup nirvana!!!

Oh, I am ***SO*** in Heaven! My wonderful Mother-in-law cooked a monster ham for Christmas Eve dinner, and sent the bone home with us. Well, she sent the bone home for the dog (she spoils Tasha rotten, LOL) ... but I said, "No way is that dog getting the bone until I've made SOUP!"

The bone was about 14 inches long (yeah, there was a joint), and Mom-in-law left a LOT of meat on it, which I trimmed pretty well (still had a lot left - must have been 4 pounds of meat left!), and then tossed into a pot with 3 pounds of dried "ham beans" (close enough to Navy beans that it makes no difference) and LOTS of water... Brought that puppy to a boil, covered it and left it to simmer for a couple hours, and then added 2 onions, diced; 4 carrots, peeled, quartered and sliced; some freshly ground pepper, perhaps 1 tablespoon (hey, it was white pepper - much milder!); and then about 2 cups of diced ham that I'd cut off (still have more...!) and cooked it another hour...

Mmmmmmm! The beans melt in my mouth, the ham taste saturates the soup, and my tummy is happyhappyhappy!

God, thank You for the blessings of a simple, hearty ham soup!

And, once the bones cool down, Tasha the Dog may have her treat ;-)

Bhutto assassinated! (BREAKING)

Bhutto is dead... and what's this going to happen in Pakistan? Another state of emergency?

UPDATE - Probably the best round up of news at the moment is over at Pajama Media... Although, this story will probably have repercussions over the next several weeks. This looks like an extremely coordinated attack, and you can bet there will be charges of governmental conspiracy (WizBang!). Pakistan is in for a hard time...

UPDATE: Bill Roggio has an excellent initial analysis up over at the Long War Journal...

UPDATE: My ODBA blog-brother, DJ of the Right Wing Liberal, outlines the basic history of this terrible SNAFU, and it really helps me understand the likely problems Pakistan will have, and many of the ramifications of this heinous murder.

UPDATE: Jules Crittendon offers more analysis... Gateway Pundit has an excellent roundup with lots of photos...

Welcome, Jesus!

King of Kings. Lord of Lords. God Almighty. Creator. Savior. Immanuel - God with us. The Bright and Morning Star. The Root of David. The Rod of Jesse. The Rose of Sharon. The Lion of the Tribe of Judah. Our Advocate. Everlasting Father. Prince of Peace. Messiah. The Bred of Life. The True Vine. The Way, the Truth, and the Life. The Captain of our salvation. Mighty Warrior. Lord of Hosts. The Good Shepherd. The Holy One of Israel. Redeemer. The Image of God. Lamb of God. Light of the World. The Resurrection and the Life.

Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End.

I AM.

Born in Bethlehem, two thousand years ago. Born into a frail, mortal body, so He could walk with us and talk with us and teach us of His Father. Born to touch us with a gentle hand, to raise us up and transform us with infinite love and forgiveness. Born to live in us, to guide us, to heal us. Born to live and die for us, to show His great love for us while we were yet still sinners.

The Lord of Glory, born on earth.

Welcome, Jesus. Welcome, Lord! May Your light shine upon us and may Your love overshadow us. Send Your Spirit to us today, to bring us Your great salvation and kindle new life in our cold, dead spirit.

Welcome, Savior!

"Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
“ Glory to God in the highest,
      And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

Welcome to the Carnival of Christmas, 2007 Edition

Welcome to the December 24, 2007 edition of the Carnival of Christmas! I want to thank everyone who participated this year - there are a lot of excellent posts covering a wonderfully large range of topics.

Even more importantly, I hope and pray that you have been blessed by all the wonderful entries at the Christmas Alliance, and that you take the entries in this edition of the Carnival to make your Christmas season more enjoyable for you and your family and friends.

May God richly bless you all... And now, on to the Carnival!

First, I'd like to give pride of place to two people who have always been an inspiration to me. They remind me of hope and joy in the midst of trials, and they are wonderful examples of courage and cheerful perseverance. First, my beloved blog-brother GM Roper offers a beautifully moving story about his grandfather, who really understood the true meaning of Christmas: Nat Melbert's Last Christmas. And then my blog-sis, Susan Kerry, writes about the Ripples that radiate out from events in your life. Hope and joy out of pain - truly, a wonderful lesson to learn in this blessed season. If there are only two posts you read from this round-up of excellent submissions, these are the ones to savor!

Oh, and don't forget to watch NORAD track Santa!!!

[UPDATE] Ah, another post of note - Kender had to take time off from his vacation to get this to post for me, since Blogger was being snicky and didn't want to publish it when he told it to... But you should go read Christmas Without Mom, over at Kender's Musings.

Christmas Recipes

Karen Dowell presents Christmas just wouldn't be the same without Brussels Sprouts! posted at Wiggly Wigglers. Now, I'm not fond of Brussels sprouts, but pesto and garlic can make anything taste yummy!

Kathy Maister offrers three entries to the Carnival. First up is Holiday Cookies posted at Kathy Maister's startcooking.com. Kathy reminds us "You don't need fancy baking skills to make these beautiful, tasty, easy-bake Christmas cookies, and they're great for entertaining over the holidays." Kathy's second offering is How to Carve a Turkey or a Chicken "If you need help carving your bird for Christmas dinner, here's everything you need to know." Finally, she gives a wonderful recipe for Cranberry Relish, saying, "If you are lucky enough to get an invitation to a dinner that includes a turkey or a goose, offer to bring the cranberry relish. This recipe involves no cooking, but I guarantee your efforts will be appreciated!"

Christine has two recipes posted at her blog Me, My Kid and Life: An American Single Mom Living in France: first Hot Apples with Cinnamon and Honey  which she says are "Delicious, all natural, healthy holiday dessert!" Then she adds Vin Chaud - Hot Wine  saying, "Bring a little bit of France home for the holidays with this traditional French favorite, vin chaud (hot wine). Enjoy the holidays!" Very similar to mulled wine, but with a slightly different twist

Rebecca presents Gingerbread House Patterns and Inspiration posted at The Experimental Kitchen.

GP presents The 10 Commandments of Holiday Eating posted at Innside Montana-Your Home at the Range, saying, "The 10 commandments of holiday eating... thou shalt not skimp on holiday goodies.. Read on!" Oh, how true...

Music

GrrlScientist presents White Christmas posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, "One of my readers sent me this very cute rendition of the classic Christmas song, 'White Christmas', so of course, I had to share it with all of you! It includes the soundtrack along with a goofy cartoon." It's cute!

David at third world county is our music maestro and has many beautiful old hymns you need to experience: Who Is He in Yonder Stall? which is "...a brief excerpt of the song as performed by the Moody Bible Institute choir/band", then A Christmas Lullaby. Of course, even though Christmas is on a Tuesday not a Thursday this year, he also gives us a Thursday Thirteen post: T-13; 1.50: Fav Xmas Carols (Re-run :-)) And finally, a gorgeous hymn one rarely hears anymore: Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus. Thanks, David - it's good to be reminded of these real Christmas songs!

[UPDATE] *shakes head at self* I forgot that Alton - yep, another blog-brother - had sent in Wee Fish Ewe A Mare... Great job, Alton, and I apologize for the oversight!

[UPDATE] And another blog-brother sneaks in under the wire, LOL Jay over at Stop the ACLU has a beautiful video up!

Gifts

Roger Carr reminds us of some simple Christmas Acts of Kindness at Everyday Giving Blog. I really like seeing posts like this, because they remind us that Christmas is not really about getting stuff, it's about giving!

Tip Diva presents Top Ten Tips - Last Minute Gifts, and there are many good ideas here (I particularly like the gift certificate to a favorite restaurant idea! )

Kim Ethridge presents 10+ Top Alternatives for Gifts in the Spirit of the Season posted at Cranberries on the Counter, saying, "Some alternative gifts in the true spirit of Christmas." Again, many good, alternative ideas for gifts which emphasize a generous and selfless outlook.

Gilly Marcelli presents Christmas Spirit posted at DiscoveryDiva, which is an excellent list of ways to give the gift of your time and effort one someone's behalf. This is gift-giving in the true Spirit of Christmas by helping others in a loving and generous way.

Joshua C. Karlin writes a very thoughtful post,How Should We Give? at Marketing & Fundraising Ideas. No, despite the title, it is NOT a splog! Joshua really has a grasp of the attitude behind our giving, and this is a wonderful essay we all ought to read. Here's a quote: "I give because it is the right thing to do. And Maimonides is trying to teach me that the act of giving is not about me, but about the recipient. I need to be concerned about the dignity of the recipient more than how I feel about giving."

GrrlScientist presents The Gift of Giving posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, "Surprisingly, gift-giving often provides more benefits for the giver than the recipient." Ah, yes, there's that old saying "It is better to give than to receive!" How true... 

Steve Faber presents - Holiday Gift Ideas to Save Money posted at DebtBlog. Yeah, I know, it looks like a splog, but the suggestions in the post are excellent - and who wants to splurge on Christmas and then get all those extravagant credit card bills?

Traditions

Leslie Carbone is one of my blog-siblings from Virginia, and is a brilliant and gracious lady. She's offering three submissions, all about Colonial times and how they celebrated Christmas, and accompanied them with beautiful pictures: Colonial Christmas Decorations,  Colonial Christmastide at Night and More Colonial Christmas Decorations. Simply gorgeous!

pickel has been really digging around the 'net, and submitted several posts: Russian Holy Supper which is posted at A Child Chosen. Then pickel found Our Eve Tradition (which really sounds delightful!)posted at My Two Boys. Now I'm fortunate that my daughter never had issues with Santa, but pickel's final find, The Do's and Dont's of Visiting With Santa (found at Discussing Autism - which looks like a very worthy blog just for the topic!), gives many helpful guidelines so you don't have a terrified child on your hands.

The Random Yak tells us what the Random Family does on Christmas "E"ve.  Family traditions like this are what really make memories!

Dana reminds me of Family Traditions posted at Principled Discovery. I remember having a program on TV on Christmas Day when I was growing up - it only had a warm fire crackling in the fireplace, with beautiful Christmas music playing. It was very simple, but so beautiful! Thanks for reminding me, Dana - and I like the horses in your banner!

Host Bee gives many tips on how to keep Believing in Santa at Busy Bee Lifestyle. I remember on Christmas in particular when Santa was very real to my Darling Munchkin, and that child-like delight and wonder she had is a cherished memory for me.

Christine pops up again with Marche de Noel | Christmas Market posted at Me, My Kid and Life: An American Single Mom Living in France, and says, "Happy holidays from Strasbourg!" I really like seeing traditions from other countries

Karen Dowell at Wiggly Wigglers makes another appearance, too, and discusses the The Twelve Days of Christmas with all sorts of factoids about this traditional song.

 Parodies and Humor

Catnabbit presents Knotty Cat Got Vacuum for Christmas posted at Catnabbit!, saying, "Instead of a visit from Santa Claws, the knotty cats get a visit from the Unholy Vacuum Beast!" Oh, noes! The poor kitti-purrs must have been very naughty indeed!

Wenchypoo presents Post-Holiday Commentary posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket. Well, I suppose you could say this is satire, but Wenchypoo does put her finger on some of the more insane things we do at Christmas. Don't forget, tomorrow is supposed to be joyful and fun!

Madeleine Begun Kane presents Ms. Legal Person Answers Your Holiday Questions posted at Mad Kane's Humor Blog. Cute!

Ron is another of my Virginia blog-sibs, and he found Chinese Food on Christmas posted at Isophorone.He sent it in with this comment, "Sorry, couldn't resist!" That's OK, Ron - my husband loved it so much, we had to pull it up and show it to the family!

WhatWorksForUs presents No. Ornaments Are NOT Chew Toys. posted at What Works For Us. They're not?! Well, y'all are gonna have to get that poor puppy some good rawhide to gnaw on, then!

 Pictures and Video

GrrlScientist chimes in again (gosh, I really like how several people found many things to send in!) Lincoln Center Christmas Tree 2007.It's gorgeous! I love nighttime shots of Christmas lights.

Ogre, who is a dear friend even though he DOES need a bath (Sorry - inside joke ), lets us know the progress of his Snowman Army over at Ogre's Politics and Views. You know, Ogre, I'm still not sure you AREN'T the re-incarnation of Calvin...

chaosgone presents Christmas Time All Over the World posted at Chaosgone, saying, "Videos of Christmas all over the world." How fun! As I said before, I really like seeing how other countries celebrate.

Hilltown Families presents DIY: Christmas Spider Holiday Cards posted at Hilltown Families. This is a cute little video (but... "Christmas spider"?! LOL)

cookingfor5 presents Christmas Cookies posted at Cookie Creations, saying, "For my family, Christmas is simply not Christmas without Cut-out Cookies." It's a lovely picture... But where's the recipe?

Always On Watch, yet another blogger who has honored me with friendship, posts Christmas 2007 at Always On Watch. AOW loves the hymn "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" and found a beautiful video to match it.

 Stories

Suldog presents Pointy The Poinsettia posted at Suldog-O-Rama, saying, "The story of Pointy The Poinsettia!" Well, this could have gone in "humor," too, but I wanted to put it here... And I'm glad that Pointy has a good home!

Santa's Elf asks you to post your Christmas memories & stories at Love Santa, saying, "Our whole blog is a collection of Christmas stories & memories."

"If the troops in Iraq can't be home for Christmas, then we're going to make sure that a little bit of home goes to Iraq," said one volunteer at the Carroll County Agriculture Center on Saturday, December 1." And thus begins Kevin E. Dayhoff's report,20071201 Operation Christmas Tree. What a wonderful thing to do, to show love and support for our troops! 

Leticia Velasquez presents THE JESSE TREE posted at cause of our joy.

The Random Yak sends in Surprise! It's a Christmas Tree! posted at The Random Yak. It's a perfect retelling of the glorious and you-must-do-it-at-least-ONCE experience of finding the Perfect Christmas Tree^(TM)!

 The Spirit of Christmas

Adam Graham sent in Christmas and the People We Ought to Be posted at Adam's Blog. Adam is, of course, the originator of the Carnival of Christmas, and it's a delight to read his post. Here's a sample: "It's a remarkable thing. Amidst all the commercialism, the birth of Christ lays out the standard for goodness and love to our fellow man.  Sometimes, we think goodness is only for Christmas, but it's not. Real needs live on long after Christmas is gone." Indeed!

Julie Heath posts about Teaching Kids The Meaning of Christmas at More4kids. This one is from last year, but I think it was submitted after last year's deadline, so it rolled over to this year. It's very worthwhile reading!

The Career Counselor presents Holiday Season: Simple Ways to Increase Morale and Happiness at Your Office posted at ask the CareerCounselor, saying, "Between business deadlines, social events, and family affairs it's often hard to find the time to celebrate with your colleagues. To life spirits at your office, here are a few quick and easy ideas that offer a lot of smiles for very little time or expense." Again, this is from last year, but there are a lot of good suggestions for the workplace.

Erika Wilson asks What's So Special About Christmas? at Royally Redeemed, saying, "For Christians, Christmas is a time for great rejoicing. For this is the day we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Read about why Christmas is so very special and browse my favorite Christmas things."

Yet another of my Virginia blog-family sent an entry in! Scott White asks Where has CHRISTmas gone? at Scott's Thoughts. "First of all, Christmas should be personal. It is best celebrated they way you and your family want to celebrate it. It's a time of joy, thanksgiving, friendship. family, love, blessings, gifts. A time of celebration. It's the time we, as Christians, celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus." Amen, Scott... Thanks!

GP presents The Best Things in Life Cant be Found at the Mall posted at Innside Montana-Your Home at the Range, saying, "There is so much to do in this now-extended holiday season that it all seems to fly by before we even have time to just sit quietly and enjoy a cozy winter's evening waiting patiently for Christmas to arrive. Seven ideas we have come to value as we embrace the notion that, The Best Things in Life Aren't Things." You said it!

Rena Williams talks aboutChristmas Meaning posted at Balanced Success, and discusses how the meaning can change throughout life.

Big Dog, another blog-buddy of mine, reminds us of The Reason for the Season posted at Big Dogs Weblog. "Christmas is a time of renewed hope. A time where people can reflect and realize that while we are born as sinners, our sins were forgiven because of the selfless act of Jesus Christ. While we mark this as his birth, we also realize that his birth was the beginning of a journey that ended in suffering and pain, all out of the love God has for mankind." Make sure you read the whole thing!

Cathy presents CHRISTMAS! WHERE THE HEART IS! posted at Joy Thru Generosity, saying, "Many years ago I found myself far from home as Christmas approached. I was in a country that spoke a different language and I hardly knew anyone I was with. There was no escaping the fact it  was December 24th and the next day was sure to come."

 Podcasts

Adam Graham presents The Big Little Jesus posted at The Old Time Dragnet Show, saying, "In these 1952 classic Dragnet radio episode, A statue of the Baby Jesus has been stolen and Joe Friday and his partner Frank Smith must track it down before Christmas morning."

 Poems

Xyba gives us A Different Christmas Poem at Once More Into the Breach. I've read this one before, and it always brings a grateful tear to my eyes.

Elizabeth Wrobel presents Poem: Christmas Time posted at Little Cottage in the Northwoods (A Writer's Paradise). I like it!

 Other/Misc.

Debora Silkotch presents O Christmas Tree posted at Ramblings, saying, "Plant a living tree!" It's a great idea! When we moved to Virginia many years ago, we had a live tree, and it was still growing happily in the front yard when we sold that house a while ago. I think that next year we'll do it again.

kelly at {the ringpop bride} gives 11 tips for a holly jolly christmas party..., and they are excellent ideas for really making the holidays sparkle for your guests!

Susan presents Holiday Romance in a Sea of Consumerism posted at The Innovative Traveler.

Tip Diva returns with Top Ten Tips - O Christmas Tree, offering several helpful hints for a successful and beautiful tree.

And I'm going to finish up with our music maestro, David of Third World County, whose final entry is a Fifteenth Century Christmas Sermon: "For this is the most holy night on which the Redeemer of the world, Jesus Christ, chose to be born of the glorious Virgin Mary. Arise, therefore, all, and watch. Prepare your hearts and pray. The Lord has come. Come and adore. Seek Jesus, and you will find him. Knock at the door and it will be opened to you. Enter the house and you will see. Our King has arrived. Christ has been born to us."

Thank you so much for participating in the Carnival of Christmas. I pray that tomorrow is full of joy and laughter for you and yours, and that this roundup has made you smile, made you think, and made you remember why we celebrate! Don't forget to go over to the Christmas Alliance for a whole bunch of goodies which weren't submitted to the Carnival.

May you have a blessed New Year, and I hope you enjoyed it! Oh... My Christmas posts can all be found here, if you'd care to look at them

Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Christmas using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of christmas, blog carnival.

It's called CHRISTMAS!!!

Big, snuggly, loving purrs to Concrete Bob, who found this:

 

UPDATE: The guys who sing this are Go Fish, and the song is from their album Snow.

Fred Thompson is CLASSY

As Jay over at Stop the ACLU says,

He completely keeps overt politics out of it, and doesn't even appear in it! Very classy, and doesn't even plug his website. The subject matter is right on. This gave me chills. He could have went the overtly political route like Huckabee and Hillary, but he didn't. I think that speaks volumes.

Classy. Very, very classy!

OK, let's try again...

Drivel has no setting to "post and publish" but you can use CTRL+return/enter, apparently... It's STILL really basic - I miss all the different stuff WinLiveWriter has... [pout]

Nope, still only posted a draft, so I had to go on TPad and publish it, which kinda defeats the purpose, doesn't it? **grf**

Test

The Beloved Husband has downloaded and installed UBUNTU on one of our old laptops, and we've been poking around with Linux-compatible blogging tools. This one is called Drivel, and it's been rather a mess to figure out the set up...

It's also very, very, VERY minimalist - I really like Windows Live Writer, which even Wine (don't ask - computer geek stuff) doesn't seem to want to run on this OS. I'm sure we can MAKE it do so, it's just going to take more tweaking than I feel like dealing with at the moment.

***BUT*** if I can get that set up, and still like UBUNTU after using it a while, I'm going to have my Beloved switch my big Vaio Laptop (I'm using the old, smaller one at the moment) over to UBUNTU, and ditch the Windows OS...

(OK, and oddly enough, Drivel posted this to TPad as a draft... Gotta check the preference settings...

This sounds pretty gross...

... but dealing with sinus infections and allergies is the PITS! Since I do deal with them on a regular basis (*sigh*), I think I'm going to give this a try: Sinus problems? Wash them away -

Flushing the nasal passages with a salt solution, or nasal irrigation, is a yoga tradition that dates back thousands of years.

But though it is already recommended by physicians for cleansing after sinus surgery, the practice is just catching on as an alternative treatment for nasal stuffiness caused by colds, sinusitis and allergies.

A study published last year in the Annals of Family Medicine found that nasal irrigation is safe, well-tolerated, inexpensive and effective.

The study, done by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, also found that patients were able to do it at home with minimal training.

"It really makes you feel a lot better right away," said Diane Heatley, founder of Med-Systems Inc., a Madison, Wis.-based company that manufacturers and markets the SinuCleanse nasal wash system.

So, I've gone to the SinuCleanse site and downloaded a coupon... Heck, I need to go to CVS for some other things anyway! Actually, now that I think of it, I recall that Raven told me this really worked, and even gave a recipe for the solution to make at home... I think I need to dig that out, too!

(*blech* I hate it when I have a typo in the title of a post... Fixed now)

The Prodigal Son - a Christmas story?!

Yes, actually, it is!

Jason Boyett, writing at TrueU, posts "My Favorite Christmas Story":

But if there’s any downfall to our evangelical emphasis on Easter, it’s that we’ve unconsciously shipped the Christmas story off to second place. We talk about the resurrection all the time. But the incarnation? The story of the Christ child, Emmanuel, “God with us”? Other than during these few weeks at the end of the year, the first coming of Jesus gets scant attention. Maybe it’s because the entire concept is pretty hard to wrap our minds around. The theological idea that Jesus was 100 percent man and 100 percent divine doesn’t exactly lend itself to one of those handy charts in the back of our Bibles, right before the maps of Paul’s missionary journeys. It doesn’t play well on Flannelgraph, either.

In fact, I’d be willing to bet that, while almost any churchgoer can tell you the significance of the resurrection, a surprising percentage wouldn’t even be able to define the word incarnation. And that’s a problem. Because without the incarnation — without God becoming flesh and dwelling among us — you don’t get to Jesus. His life and death don’t mean much if He’s not fully man and fully divine. The resurrection doesn’t happen if He’s not God with skin on. Which means you wouldn’t be too far off in identifying the incarnation as the central point of the entire Bible.

[...]

If the incarnation is the story of God entering His creation — of God refusing to wait for us to come to Him and instead, demeaning Himself to come to us — then the story that best illustrates it is the Parable of the Prodigal Son. And that’s why it’s my all-time favorite Christmas story, better than anything Charles Schultz or Dr. Seuss have ever told.

As far as parables go, the title is misleading. Somewhere along the way, it got named after the son who leaves his family, squanders his money, and returns home a failed wreck of a man. But I wonder if maybe the story isn’t so much about the son as it is about the father. When the son left home, requesting his inheritance in advance, what he was symbolically doing was telling his dad to drop dead. He humiliated his father. The son’s actions would have stunned Jesus’ listeners, and they wouldn’t have been surprised had the family immediately disowned the boy and moved on as if he never existed.

But that’s not what happened. Consider the father’s response when the son returned.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” (Luke 15:20).

I love the detail that the father saw the son “while he was still a long way off.” He hadn’t written the kid off as dead, as would have been expected. Nope, he was actually waiting for him to return. He was looking for him. And when he finally saw the prodigal, the dad leapt out of his rocking chair, stumbled down the porch steps and tore off down the road like a crazy person. The father took action. He went running toward the son who had so humiliated him. He didn’t care what it looked like, or what anyone else thought. He only cared about his child.

The father, of course — the crazy guy laughing and weeping and kicking up dust as he sprints down the road — is God.

Exactly.

God does the unthinkable in the Incarnation: He comes to us! We - who have spurned and rejected Him, who blaspheme and rebel against Him, who want nothing to do with Him - and yet He comes to us in love and humility. He doesn't wait for us to make our own way back - He knows that's impossible. He doesn't write us off as hopeless - He knows He can give us hope. He doesn't welcome us grudgingly - He chases after us and enfolds us in His loving arms.

He comes to us!

That's the whole crazy, vibrant, unthinkable passion behind the Incarnation: God loved us SO MUCH that He chased us, He went out to us, He searched us out, He lived with us... God with us, "Immanuel."

Don't you see your Father chasing you? Stop... and let Him catch you!

Carnival of Christmas - get your entries in!

Because tomorrow, at 3pm Eastern, is the last day to submit posts!

I will have the Carnival up on Monday sometime (hopefully first thing), both here on the regular blog, as well as on my page for the Carnival of Christmas, 2007...

Unto us...

For unto us a Child is born,
      Unto us a Son is given;
      And the government will be upon His shoulder.
      And His name will be called
      Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
      Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
      There will be no end,
      Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
      To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
      From that time forward, even forever.
      The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:6-7, NKJV)

A Promise kept, and a Promise to come...

What do I mean by that? Well, of course you know that the first Promise is the coming of the Christ, "Immanuel" - God with us.  But the second Promise has yet to be fulfilled - Christ will return, and He will take the throne of Israel, which shall be the throne of the whole world.

Now, you know - or you ought to by now - that I am not a fan of big government. But when God Himself comes to rule us directly, His government will be perfectly righteous and just. Every single law will be fair, and will be implemented without any hint of partiality or favoritism.

How often do we say, "But that's not fair!"? In the Kingdom, we will never have cause to say that... Oh, yes, there are those who will say that, because we will not all be perfected in the Millennial Kingdom and will still be influenced by sin (take a look at Revelation 20:1-10), and so there will still be selfishness and greed. But the Rule of God will be prefect, and in the end, all mouths will be silenced, and every knee will bow in acknowledgement that the Child born two thousand years ago is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Each of us has a choice: do we bow now in love and joy, or do we bow later under condemnation and judgement?

Open your heart and let the Christ Child be born there this Christmas. Open your heart to the glorious Promise of His return. Accept the wondrous Gift He offers, and join your very soul to the chorus of praise to the God who loved us so much that He came down to live with us!

Please don't forget that this Sunday is the deadline to submit a post to the Carnival of Christmas! Also, the Christmas Alliance is going strong with all sorts of holiday goodness, so make sure you stop by...

No, don't like someone else using MY credit card

Which means, Sen. Clinton, that I don't like YOU (or any of our congressional spendthrifts, for that matter) writing checks "on behalf of" the American taxpayers - of which I am one.

IOW, stipulated that all these "gifts" are wonderful and worthy (which is NOT my opinion, Madame Big Sister), it is generally considered very bad form in polite society to "gift" someone with a "resent" that you force them to pay for.

Lord, if America elects this shyster as its first female president, 1984 will be well on its way to an even speedier fulfillment.

Smyth County Conservative - Welcome to the ODBA!

After a fairly tumultuous year, we at the ODBA are again expanding our membership of conservative bloggers. This week, we are blessed to welcome Adam Tolbert, the writer of Smyth County Conservative, to our ranks. I am sure that Adam's enthusiasm and dedication to conservative principles will be a wonderful addition to the Old Dominion Blog Alliance!

Welcome, Adam! Pull up a chair, grab a drink, and join the fun!

The "Guy" Christmas Tree

Forwarded to my Beloved Husband, who then passed it on to me... The accompanying comment was, "Took me all weekend, but I finally put my tree up!"

Frankly, if it only took you a weekend, I'm amazed the tree looks so... stable!

"Bethlehem Dawn"

Todd Agnew has a Christmas album, Do You See What I See?, which is full of beautiful songs. This morning the iPod served up "Bethlehem Dawn" -- which got me to thinking...

What did the shepherds think of all this? There they were, out in the dark fields watching over their sheep, and then suddenly!, a burst of heavenly radiance knocked them off their feet... Angels appeared, a mighty chorus, shining with glory, triumphantly announcing the Advent of the King:

“Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

In a manger?! What?

Can you imagine what the shepherds thought? They had this glorious announcement of the birth of the King, shouted from the heavens by the Heavenly Host... and then, they went to the stable.

They went to a little stable which did not have the radiance of heaven infusing it, but which did have a tired young girl, exhausted and sweaty after delivering her first child. The stable had a father, worn out after anxiously helping his wife deliver a child who ought to have been born when they were at home, surrounded by family and older women who knew what to do! The stable had animals quietly sleeping, or curiously looking over at all the fuss in confusion and bemusement while they munched on some hay.

The stable had a little child, wrapped up tightly in swaddling cloths, fragile as all newborns are... The King of Kings, God Himself, in this tiny, frail, human body!

How confused the shepherds must have been with this very contrary set of events! The glory of Heaven pointing to the rude humility of the stable - what would you have thought?

The sunrise was beautiful this morning, but somehow it seemed that everything was darker then the sky we had seen just a few hours ago, as the angels sang a song of joy.

Not even the Bethlehem dawn could compare to the light it revealed,
Not even the Bethlehem sun that unveiled the son of God sleeping in a cattle stall, the almighty God humbled to save us all,
Not even the Bethlehem dawn.

The cry of a baby shatters the silence,
Can you believe that same voice makes my heart beat?
And the tears in his eyes, and in his mother’s and father’s, are tears for all mankind.

Not even the Bethlehem dawn could compare to the light it revealed,
Not even the Bethlehem sun that unveiled the son of God sleeping in a cattle stall, the almighty God humbled to save us all,
Not even the Bethlehem dawn.

This little baby is crying my tears for me,
This little baby is bathing in my shame,
This little baby is giving up his glory to take my place, to light the way.

Not even the Bethlehem dawn could compare to the light it revealed,
Not even the Bethlehem sun that unveiled the son of God sleeping in a cattle stall, the almighty God humbled to save us all,
Can you believe what he sacrificed for me?

Not even the Bethlehem dawn.

The Child born two thousand years ago grew up and obeyed His Father perfectly all His life. And then, at the appointed time, He took our punishment, He suffered our death - and gave Himself for us. God Incarnate gave the first, and best, Christmas gift - and then gave the ultimate Gift of Sacrifice and Forgiveness.

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will to men!"

Will you take His offer?

We have nothing of worth to give Him, yet He asks us to give it. What does He ask of us? He wants us - our hearts, our minds, our pride, our pain, our sin, our failures... All of our being.

And in return, He gives yet more: His Spirit, His forgiveness, His blessings, His Home... His love.

I pray that the Babe of Bethlehem will be born anew in the hearts and souls of many this Christmas... Perhaps your heart is empty and longing for the Child; if so, let Him come in.

Let Christmas be proclaimed in your heart today!

Don't forget that the Carnival of Christmas' deadline is this Sunday, so get your posts ready, and submit them here. Also, go on by the Christmas Alliance home page and contribute your entries!

"They hated Me first..."

Instapundit points me over to Classical values with this comment:

SELECTIVE FEAR OF RELIGION? Demonstrating, I guess, that it's better to be feared than to be loved. But then, they say you always hurt the one you love . . . .

CV initially discusses how people are afraid of criticizing Islam, but not other religions, particularly Christianity:

What intrigues me is why so many of those who are afraid to criticize Islam are nonetheless quite fearless when it comes to other religions. 

It's easy to dismiss this as cowardly hypocrisy, as selective religious bigotry, or as anti-Western bias, which of course a lot of it is. 

But I think another dimension is post-9/11 denial. This is not ordinary denial, as it's closely related to the fiercely anti-war people whose hatred toward Bush is often characterized as "Bush Derangement Syndrome." Before 9/11, there was plenty of hypocrisy, and religious bigotry, plenty of anti-Western bias, and plenty of cowards, but they generally did not hesitate to criticize Islam. Feminists in Berkeley used to demonstrate against the veil. 

Yet the fact, is, this "fear" of criticizing Islam is comparatively recent, and closely related to 9/11. The tenets of Christianity -- even over-the-top fundamentalist zealotry -- has not changed since 9/11, nor has Mormonism. But Western religions are attacked as never before. I think they're substitute targets.

He updates his post with a response to Prof. Reynolds' comment:

My thanks to Glenn Reynolds for the link, and the thoughtful observations. If it is better to be feared than loved, then Islam is better than Christianity, as it is more feared. 

But if we add to that the paradox that "you always hurt the one you love," it gets even more complicated, because in the ordinary course of things, the "one you love" also loves you. And in theory at least, Christianity is built on love. Which means that those who hurt Christians are supposed to be loved by them in return.

I would remind my fellow Christians that we ought not be surprised by this. After all, Jesus said:

If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.

Shaun's right: this is a good ad!

No, I don't plan on voting for Huckabee, but he does get it right - totally right! - in this ad:

God bless, Mr. Huckabee. Reminders like this, stripped of politics and self-promotion, are what we all need!

(Purrs to my blog-brother, Shaun Kenney)

A bright, brief candle...

... which was cherished and loved.

What a brave and godly couple! Given terrible news, they chose life anyway, and could therefore say "Until we meet again" with faith and confidence, and without regret.

"The doctor said that the majority of women with the diagnosis like this would terminate the pregnancy," said Rob. "And as he started to say that Gina said, 'No.' She just stopped him."

Gina says that in her heart she was certain of one thing. She was already a mom. She says God had given her a child and she already felt a deep connection with her son.

It was in that moment she made a sacrifice only a mother could make.

"I decided to hold tightly to my faith and push through my fear," said Gina. "I decided to put myself aside and know that this baby has a life right now and I am meant to be his mother right now." [...]

They had six hours with their son.

"I found some comfort in the fact that he went from safe in my womb to God's arms," said Gina.

The Harrises say their faith has given them the strength and perspective they have needed to get through this time.

"We have a choice. We can be bitter or we can choose to appreciate what were given," Gina said. "To actually carry a baby and be a mother is the greatest gift that anyone could have. I am confident that one day we will see David again and we'll get to know our son in heaven."

David Paul Harris taught his parents that love isn't measured in time.

"I held him and he was born and he lived and he had an impact on people," said Gina. "Most of all he had an impact on me. His life was so short but his life had great meaning." 

Yes. Exactly.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a beautiful example of faith and strength and unselfishness! Sadly, it is all too uncommon in our culture; it is far more "convenient" for people to abort a child instead of stepping up to the plate and being Mom and Dad.

May God bless the Harris' and hold them in His loving hands. May He strengthen their faith and cause their witness for Him to shine through their lives. And, at the right time, may He bring them another child to raise in His name.

And, when it is time for them to go Home as well, I know that the reunion with young David will be joyous!

(Kitti purrs to the Mighty Malkin)

UPDATE: Please also go over to Wizbang!, where contributor Bill Jempty tells his own moving and faith-filled story.

Oh, boy... Jigzone is addicting me again!

Have you gone over there and enjoyed all the puzzles? You can change the number of pieces, you can change the shapes of the pieces... Hours of good, clean fun!

How to live like a Christian...

Now that I'm trying to get back into the swing of things and post regular meditations, I find myself at this very difficult passage in Ephesians 4. Verses 17through 32 are not hard in the sense that they're confusing - oh, no! They're very difficult in the sense that they are clear an simple commands... that we don't always want to obey.

So, if you're feeling courageous, click on the "continue reading," and we'll talk about how God wants us to live, now that He's saved us from the pit of hell...

Wonderful One

This should almost be a "Thoughts from the iPod" post, but I'm going to make it a Christmas theme.

I was listening to Newsong's beautiful tune, "Wonderful One," and it made me think of how wonderful God really is:

some say you're a lunatic, some
say you're not the one
can't help but disagree with it,
i believe you're god's own son
i'm sure as a man can be, knowing
all you've saved me from
i know first hand the miracles
that you've done inside my heart
i'll gladly stand and testify just who you are 

chorus:
(you're the wonderful one)
every breath i take i want my
life to bring you praise
(you're the wonderful one)
i am so amazed by your never-ending grace
(you're the wonderful one)
and nothing in this world could
separate me from your love
(you're the wonderful one) 

well i've seen all the evidence,
nothing else i need to know
i'm convinced that a world like this
needs to know that there is hope 

i know first hand the miracles that
you've done inside my heart
i'll gladly stand and testify just who you are 

chorus 

bridge:
you help me in my helplessness,
you heal me in my brokenness
tell me how could i forget
the wonders of your love 

chorus

Liar, lunatic, or Lord - the classic choice described by C.S. Lewis.

But only the true and living God, only the God who loves us and created us, only the holy and righteous God, only the merciful and gracious God, would ever think to humble Himself and come live among us. Only this God would sacrifice Himself for us, ransoming us from the grip of sin. Only this God would raise Himself from the dead to prove who He is and that His promises are sure.

Only Jesus.

Born in a rude stable two thousand years ago, and still willing to be born into our sad and sinful hearts today - will this be the year that your heart becomes His throne?

Remember, the Carnival of Christmas deadline is less than two weeks away - so get those submissions in! As always, swing by the Random Yak's Christmas Alliance webpage for loads of Christmas cheer.

The Gratitude Campaign: Just say THANK YOU

I'm on board!

Our brave and wonderful troops deserve every bit of thanks we can give them. So don't hesitate - just say "Thanks."

No politics, no sermonizing, no debating.

Just a simple

"THANK YOU!"

The Gratitude Campaign

(Purrs to the always awesome Blackfive)

Hah!!! "Twelve Days of Christmas... er, Liberals!"

Heh. And, as they conclude, "If you thought our singing was bad... Just wait until the Democrats get their hands on your paycheck next year!"

Which is all well and good, but - as I told the very nice RNC telemarketer last week:

You left your base. Until the Republicans prove that they've returned to their foundations of fiscal responsibility, transparent and open accountability, small government, secure borders, law enforcement, national security, and honor in personal and public actions...

Sorry, guys... Not. One. Thin. Dime!

But the video is cute...

(Kittipurrs to the divine Mrs. M!)

Carnival of Christmas deadline getting near...

Don't forget that there's less than two weeks left to get your posts in for the Carnival of Christmas!!!

If you get them in early, I'll have more time to write up a proper plug for your post... *hint, hint* So, write something seasonal and then submit it via the link to Blog Carnival!

"I love you" could not be said a better way...

No, it really couldn't... Downhere's lyrics are just beautiful:

I'm not alone, I really believe
You never go, You never leave
Here and now, You always stay
“I love you” could not be said a better way

It's everything You've promised
There's no greater love than this
From prophets until today
A man laying down His life for His friends
Your sacrifice has spoken, You gave everything
And “I love you” could not be said
A better way

I am forgiven, I clearly see
It's why You came to do all you did for me
Trading earth with heaven, You took my place
“I love you” could not be said
A better way

Because You redeem, I know what's to come
Everything I could lose here, You've already won
So You have my surrender, with passion obey
“I love you” could not be said
A better way

Did you know that, before the Advent of Christ, the Spirit of God only "rested" upon His servants? He did not "indwell" them as He does today. In the Old Testament, God's Spirit could leave and remove Himself if the man or woman did not follow His will - take Sampson and King Saul as examples.

But today, because Christ came down and enfleshed Himself, because He lived with us and died for us, His Spirit now comes into our souls and takes up residence. God now says that He will never leave us nor forsake us: once we are saved, the Holy Spirit comes in and seals us with His eternal guarantee of salvation.

Jesus didn't just come to show us a better way... He came to be our Better Way!

Don't forget to get your submissions in to the Carnival of Christmas, and swing by the Christmas Alliance webpage for many blessings of this glorious season!

The world's smallest violin, playing "My Heart Bleeds For You"

NBC refunds advertisers as ratings plunge .

Aw. My heart bleeds...

Fourth-ranked broadcaster NBC has quietly begun reimbursing advertisers an average of $500,000 each for failing to reach guaranteed ratings levels, the first time a network has taken such a step in years, media buyers said.

Networks usually offer make-goods -- free advertising slots -- in the event of such shortfalls. But NBC has none to give. In fact, no broadcast network has much ad inventory left between now and year's end -- except for, perhaps, a handful of units the week between Christmas and New Year's, and that doesn't do much for advertisers chasing holiday shoppers.

Go read the whole article for some very nice, satisfactory schadenfreude...

Other benefits to the Robotics competition...

The Munchkin came back with this awesome poster:

Now, it was the Army ROTC which provided a good percentage of the volunteers (for which I'm very thankful - young men and women of poise and intelligence, serving the kids with grace and confidence) so I'm kind of wondering why she didn't pick up anything with an Army theme...

Of course, she could be loyal to her Daddy's - and her grandfather's - branch of the service...

*sigh*

I just love that poster, though!

Woot!!

Second place overall champions, division 1!

This is the First Lego League championship for Virginia/D.C. - and we won second place overall!!! I'm still reeling in astonishment and glee. The girls worked hard, and they kept up their efforts, even when our robot didn't perform as well as we wanted.

Next year's theme will be on climate (gee, what a surprise! [rolls eyes]), and we're already brain storming (heh) possible scenarios and research projects.

Waiting for Opening Ceremony

Light blogging this weekend...

... and, unfortunately, that includes my Christmas posts.

But we're attending the State Championships for the First Lego League, since the Darling Munchkin's team did so well in the regionals before Thanksgiving. The young'uns are very excited - which means this will be two days of definite hyperactivity! - and it would be a wonderful blast if they placed in this competition.

So, wish us luck, and if I'm fortunate, I'll toss up some quick moblog pictures so you can enjoy the mayhem, too!

In the meantime, remember that the Reason for the season is the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Offer a little kindness to a stranger, hold your patience another minute longer, give up that parking place to someone else, hold the door open for that mom and kids, smile at someone who's alone and lonely.

Bring some light into someone's life and thus reflect the joy and peace of the Light of the World!

OMG!! Emma Peel meets the Food Network!!

I just watched my first episode of Nigella Express...

Wow.

I love it!

Who is this King of Glory?

Ah, the wonders of God's provision!

As I was driving back from dropping the Darling Munchkin at school, I was listening to my iPod (lo, what a surprise!) and trying to think about what I wanted to write for today's Christmas meditation. [ponder, ponder, ponder]

God, in His wonderful timing, brought these two songs up (yes, the iPod was on "shuffle songs" - that's the way I like it), and they seemed to fit in beautifully with the Christmas theme.

Which songs were they? Well, read on...!

Hey, let's get back to Ephesians!

It's really been far too long since I worked on a study in Ephesians; my last one was over a month ago, and I worked with Ephesians 4:1-6. So, today, I'm going to continue in verses 7 through 16.

Oh, sublime....! Turkey Chili!

I'm cooking up a storm today - planning on making Red Beans 'n' Rice, perhaps some freshly baked bread... But now I'm putting the finishing touches on Turkey and White Bean Chili...

***SWOON!!!***

Dang, it's good!

This a recipe that I saw Emeril Legasse do on the Food Network last month, and it looked so awesomely good that I had to try it. This is the second time I've made it (yeah, it's that good). The first time, I pretty much kept to the recipe, but this time, I've made some adjustments.

First of all I used TWO POUNDS of dried navy beans, not just a half pound. I happen to like a lot of beans, and they're an inexpensive way to stretch your recipe. Secondly, I pretty much doubled or tripled all the spices and seasonings. With so many extra beans coming into the recipe, you need some way to keep a high level of flavor to infuse the natural blandness of the beans. I didn't think to buy more Ro*Tel or an additional can of the green chilis, but I did add about 5 cups of chicken stock instead of only three.

Basically, I used all the ingredients Emeril calls for (except the heavy cream - why does he add that??), but adjusted them to suit my tastes. After all, Emeril has to accommodate a broad range of preferences, whereas in my house, I only need to think about three people who really enjoy well-flavored food

Now, a question for all of you cooks... Why does he use cornmeal as one of his ingredients? Is it a thickener? Does it add some background flavor? Both? Neither?

Inquiring minds want to know!!!

Here's a shot of my mise en scene - you can see that little glass bowl to the left of my chicken stock (and Swanson's is a good stock!) which has the cornmeal in it. Again, I added more cornmeal than the recipe calls for.

Over to the right, of course, are those two pounds of cooked navy beans, all ready to go in the pot and soak up all the spices and flavors!

 

And here, of course, is the finished product - enough to feed a small army, don't you think? And it smells delicious! The chili powder, the cilantro, the jalepeños.... Ahhhh, I'm a happy camper!

Last time, I served this over rice (I daresay that's still how the Beloved Husband will prefer it), but I sneaked a small bowlful even before the beans had had time to soak in the flavor, and it was totally yummy "plain." I'm going to let this cool and then pack it up into smaller portions, then shove it in the refrigerator; an over night meld of flavors can only improve it!

Oh, and before I forget, this freezes very well...

Technorati Tags: turkey, chili, Emeril Legasse, food network, beans, cooking

The River has come...

The River of Life, the Source of all existence, has come into this world...

The words of this bluegrass Gospel song are simple:

As I went down in the river to pray
Studying about that good ol' way
And who shall wear the starry crown?
Good Lord show me the way

O sinners, let's go down
Let's go down, come on down
O sinners, let's go down
Down in the river to pray

As I went down in the river to pray
Studying about that good ol' way
And who shall wear the robe and crown?
Good Lord show me the way

The River has come to us, born as a Baby in a stable with only His parents and the animals to witness how softly, how quietly, this Gift was given...

Will you not come down to Him? Will you not humble yourself and cast yourself on His kind mercy and powerful salvation?

Will you send in an entry to the Carnival of Christmas? Entry guidelines and updates/news are here... Make sure you also stop by the Christmas Alliance webpage, too! If you put up posts about Christmas, make sure you link and trackback so that others monitoring the Alliance can enjoy your contributions!

It's SNOWING!!

It's not much yet, but it looks like my buddy, Raven, is gonna share some of that white stuff... Of course, it's above freezing, so it won't last long {pout}

UPDATE: Yeah, now that I'm home, it's coming down a bit more forcefully (which still isn't saying much), but I still think it won't stick, unless we get a cold front through in the next hour or so... Oh! And I took more pix, so you can see how pitiful it is.

*sigh*

I really shouldn't complain; after all, it is SNOW!!!

Hm. And we put our Christmas tree up last night - I wonder if there's a correlation...? ;-)

Pics under the fold:

Emmanuel is coming...

O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Father, two thousand years ago, You gave us Your Son in the flesh. He lived among us, He taught and healed us, and then He gave His life for us. He rose on the third day, and then ascended into Heaven... and we await His return.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Lord Jesus, Your life and death freed Your people from the chains of sin. Your sacrifice crushed the power of Satan on this earth for those who trust in You. Through Your strength, we can resist the devil, and he will flee.

Yet still we await Your return...

O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O Holy Spirit, You live within us and give us guidance and strength. You are our seal and our guarantee that we are God's children. Your presence lights a bright candle in the darkness of our souls, and blesses us with the brilliance of the Light of the World, giving us hope and the promise of our Savior's return.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Ah, Lord God Almighty, Your people Israel still close their eyes to Your glorious Son, their Messiah. You promised them and eternal King to sit on the throne of David Your servant, yet they refused to accept Him. Your remnant, O Lord, is still among them, and Your Word is still alive and vibrant, giving grace to those who heed their message.

Come, Lord - deliver your people Israel! Raise Your banner and open their eyes; rescue them by Your mighty hand! Come, Lord. Come and take Your throne!

As You came to us in silence and humility, Lord Jesus, return to us now with the trumpets' call and triumphant shout to claim all Your own so that we may proclaim:

He's come! He's come! Emmanuel
Has rescued thee, O Israel!

Don't forget to submit your entries to the Carnival of Christmas, and keep checking the Christmas Alliance webpage for updates of Christmas blessings and cheer!

Merry Tossmas!

HAH!

(Kittipurrs to Ted Slater at the Boundless Line)

That He may have the preeminence

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. (Colossians 1:15-18, NKJV)

Two thousand years ago, a Baby was born in a humble stable. On the surface, it really wasn't anything special - after all, babies are born every day, and even in these modern times many are born into poverty.

This Baby, however, was special.

This Child was the very image, the εικων (Greek, "eikon," where we get our word "icon") of God. This Child was, in fact, God Himself coming down to His people.

Note that God did not do this by coming as a King. Although He could certainly claim that stature by right, He did not do so: He came down as a little child from and obscure family that lived in a poor town. His earthy father was only a simple carpenter, not a Pharisee or a rabbi. His mother was only a young Jewish girl whose name would never have been known but for the Child she bore.

Thus God the Son, the Heir of all Creation, by whom and for whom all things were created, the very God whose word and power holds everything together... laid aside His glory, shrugged off His power, and forsook His throne so that He might live among us. He placed His tabernacle among us, and God Himself became Man.

He lived as one of us, from having His diaper changed and depending upon His parents to feed Him through all the way to taking the punishment we had earned and winning our redemption.

Why did He do this? What could possibly be worth all the pain and agony and sorrow He experienced?

He loved us. He loved us with a perfect love, a love He had for us before He even created us. He knew us from before the foundation of the earth, knew the choices and the sins that would make up our lives, and He loved us.

For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8, NKJV)

He humbled Himself and came down, so that He might raise us up and exalt us together with Himself.

Love, patience, humility, kindness, faithfulness, servanthood - displayed by the God of all that is... on our behalf.

Thus, in all things, He has the preeminence: it is His by right of creation, but it is also His because of the life He lived here and the victory over death He won.

So, as we celebrate Christmas and enjoy our families and friends, as we shop for gifts and food, as we go to parties and listen to the holiday music, let us never forget the Baby - that unique Child, who was God in the flesh - and what He has done for us.

Don't forget that the Carnival of Christmas will be held here at CatHouse Chat on December 24th; for full details please go here. And, make sure you bookmark the Christmas Alliance 2007 page for excellent holiday goodness. Links and trackbacks to both pages are welcome and encouraged!

Made like His brethren

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted. (Hebrews 2:14-18, NKJV)

Rather an odd selection of Scripture to use for a Christmas meditation, don't you think? As I was writing yesterday's post, however, the book of Hebrews kept coming to mind. I kept thinking about how Christ came to be our Perfect Prophet, King, and Priest, and how He had to become like us to fulfill these duties. Specifically, I though about how Christ came to be our Ultimate Priest and offered the supreme sacrifice of Himself on our behalf.

Just as we are frail and live our lives on this speck of dust orbiting an average sun, Christ came to live among us as one of us. He felt our hurts, He experienced our weariness, He lived our sorrows... and He showed us His joy. He is our true High Priest, who has entered into our lives and has compassion on our weaknesses.

The joy Christ has, the abundant life He offers, is freely available because He humbled Himself and came down to us two thousand years ago. He lived His life among us, lived it perfectly, and gave Himself so that we might know God and be able to live with Him forever. The Prophet, the King, and the Priest, united in one Person, came to His people and lived among them so that He would be able to give us help and comfort for every aspect of our lives. The High Priest did not sacrifice bulls, lambs, goats or doves to pay for our transgressions; He sacrificed Himself!

Jesus did not do this for the angels - He did it for *US!*

Hebrews reminds us

But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.

Jesus was born to shed His blood for His children, to be our perfect High Priest. He stands in Heaven before His Father, continually applying the redemption of His blood upon our sins, presenting His children as perfect and holy.

All this and far more, born as a baby - a helpless, dependant child - two thousand years ago...

Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!

Please don't forget that the Carnival of Christmas will be hosted here on December 24th. Submissions are due no later than the 23rd, and you can find the guidelines and submission process here. Also, the Random Yak has the Christmas Alliance going strong, so if you do post Christmas-related entries, please link and trackback to the homepage for the Christmas Alliance, 2007.

Much Abides...

Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are,--
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "Ulysses"

I just read this, quoted in a story I'm reading, and it touched my heart. I'm not usually much on poetry - not surprising with the dreck published these days - but real poetry, bold, moving and powerful, has the knack of stirring up the best and noblest of emotions.

Shakespeare, Byron, Kipling, Longfellow, Coleridge, Donne, Poe, Spenser... Men and women who could paint word pictures of incredible beauty, with vivid images and subtle rhythm that lured you into the poem and made it wrap around your senses...

We don't seem to have this any more; instead we have drabbles which are read one moment and forgotten the next, or drag us down into unsettling, uninspiring and unprofitable thoughts. My cousin writes poetry, and I confess that I haven't read much of what she's written, because samples have only left me feeling confused, unworthy and depressed.

Read those lines from "Ulysses" again. The speaker has been humbled, has gone through loss and disappointment, yet he has the ability to say "much abides." He can still conclude with that triumphant determination

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

I think I need to read some of the old masters - they knew whereof they spoke!

God with us...

"Immanuel." God with us.

"Jesus." God saves.

"Savior."

Two thousand years ago, God came down to live among us and to give His life that He may rescue us and redeem us from the pit of sin.

Two thousand years ago, a Man walked among us, fully man, yet fully God - pure and perfect in all His words, actions and deeds. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind and made the lame walk. He had authority over death and over demons. He taught us how to love one another, and how to love God.

He walked a lonely, bloody road to Calvary, and offered up His life to pay the penalty for our sins. He was buried in a borrowed tomb, and on the third day, He rose again by His own power as proof that His sacrifice was acceptable and effective - and freely offered to all who would accept it.

Forty days later, He ascended into Heaven, where He now sits on the Throne of the Universe and intercedes for us before His Father.

One day soon, He will come again and receive His own and we will go to live with Him in glory for ever and ever.

And so, today, December 1st, we begin yet again to celebrate this event: the humble birth of a Baby in a lowly stable so many years ago.

"Immanuel." God with us!

For unto us a Child is born,
      Unto us a Son is given;
      And the government will be upon His shoulder.
      And His name will be called
      Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
      Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
      Of the increase of His government and peace
      There will be no end,
      Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
      To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
      From that time forward, even forever.
      The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Please remember to submit something to the Carnival of Christmas, which will be hosted here at CatHouse Chat on December 24th. And the Random Yak has the Christmas Alliance up and running as well, so make sure you stop by every day to enjoy the celebration of this wonderful, blessed season!