Sophie's Story

           One of my favourite roles in a Toastmaster meeting is Table Topics Master. To help members practice speaking without preparation, the TTM gives random questions to those attending the meeting. The member then has to fashion a 30 second to two minute answer.  It's a helpful skill to have, especially when job hunting. I like being the TTM because I enjoy asking good questions and weaving in why I asked. This is helpful when we have no speeches as it takes a bit of pressure off members to do multiple questions.          One of the questions I posed at yesterday's meeting is, "What two things don't go together?"           The answer was celery and peanut butter and eggs and ketchup with an explanation as to why. It was a fun answer and made me think of a recent trip to a restaurant.          Last week we went to a bar and grill about 30 minutes away from where we liv...

           This week started with the announcement that Pope Francis died. The news mad me very sad. I was happy when he was released from the hospital a few weeks ago, glad that he survived a few close calls. I had hoped he would recover at home and when strong enough return to more public duties.          Things turned out differently.          For the record, I'm not Catholic so the fact that I'm mourning the pope may seem strange to some. It seems strange to me too. While I have great respect for the work of Saint Pope John Paul II, I didn't mourn him like I do Francis.          I remember the excitement around his election. He was the first to take the name Francis, the first pope from outside Europe and the first Jesuit to be elected. He chose to live simply all his life and that did not change after his election. He seemed to eschew the trappings of his office in favour of pla...

           Last year I was visiting my friend, Dana. During the visit she offered me a cinnamon roll to try. She was pleased with how the batch had turned out and told me they tasted like the ones from Cinnabon. It was a very good roll and I told her so. I also told her I'd never had a roll from Cinnabon. She told me I'd have to try them sometime.          For those of you who may be reading this and are either not from the United States or have never been in a shopping mall, Cinnabon is a small chain bakery that makes cinnamon rolls. Many times you know you are walking near one by the smell of cinnamon and baking dough. They have cinnamon rolls topped with various things, small bite sized rolls and boxes of rolls to take home.          Most of the time when I've been in a mall, it's closer to lunch time. Since I believe cinnamon rolls are either breakfast or teatime treats I've never sampled one. I must adm...

           Turns out I was wrong about my amaryllis plants. This year we will enjoy two flowing plants.  The buds starting showing up early this week. One bud is showing part of a stem and the other seems to be deciding if it should peek out of the bulb. I'm grateful and surprised. Getting amaryllis to flower is not something I'm good at. I did not inherit the green thumb of my mother or father.          At this time of year I have an itch to put seeds in the ground. There is something about seeds that has always fascinated me. Seeds don't look like much. Sometimes they are small brown and dry. Sometimes they are tiny specks almost too small to see. I like acorns with their jaunty brown caps and maple seeds with their wings that help them to sail on the wind. I even like the black walnuts that fall off the tree in our back yard, unless I accidentally step on one. Those things hurt.          No matter wh...

               I started writing about the two pound ball of yarn that I have and my attempts to find something to do with it. Halfway through writing I realized that only those who do fiber crafts would care about this topic. Having erased everything I wrote and wanting to get something out before the end of the week, I wasn't sure what to do. Then I looked outside. It's nice out there. The sun is shining. The sky is blue and there is no snow on the ground. The tulips are coming up as well as some day lilies. A topic had presented itself, I will write about nice things.          I brought up the amaryllis plants a week ago. It looks as though I will have a crop of nice green leaves this year. I don't see any flower buds. What amazes me about these plants is the speed at which they grow. I'll bet if I sat and watched them I would be able to see them move and grow. Although it's nice to have a flowers, I can be content with...

           The last time we went to Red Wing the art store in the old depot was open. I like to go in there because they have shows of various types of art and a store that sells items made by local artists. There are all kinds of things there and I like to look at them. Most of the time I  purchase something as it helps the artists and funds art displays.               I looked around as always, There are so many neat things. I saw some interesting tea cups and some beautiful hand dyed silk scarves. I looked at the jewelry. I always like looking at jewelry not matter where I am.           I saw something bright and round as I walked past a rack of necklaces. I paused to look at it. It was a small, round gold pendant with a rose in the middle. The background had a beaten appearance. The shiny appearance made it stand out form all the other necklaces around it. The back of the pendant...

           Although members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints do not observe Lent, I do.  I didn't appreciate the Lenten season when I was younger and Lutheran, but I have come to appreciate it now. There is something about sacrificing something for Lent that seems to do something for me spiritually in a way that I can't really explain.           Now those of you reading this who might also be members of the Restored church will no doubt remind me that there is a monthly fast on the first Sunday of each month so the Lenten fast is not really necessary. I do not argue the benefit of the once a month fast, however there are also benefits from abstaining from certain things for longer periods of time.           This year my Lenten fast consists of staying off Facebook and not eating meat on Fridays. I know that one is not supposed to tell others that they are fasting or what cons...

           Hi! This is Willow. Sophie put something away in the computer room. She didn't see that I followed her in and she shut the door without checking. She'll come back in here again eventually to put something else away. As long as I'm stuck here I might as well write.           I should get mad at Sophie for shutting me in since it happens at least once a week. I've learned that we have to be forgiving of our humans. They try, but they will never be as perfect as cats are. It's good to practice sneaking skills, you never know when they may come in handy.          This is a good place to live. There is lots of room to run. I like running. I especially like running when someone is chasing me. I'm very fast so I know I'll never get caught. Barnaby has come close a few times. Fortunately I can hide under all the furniture. When I do that he can't get me.          He's a good ...

           Hi I'm Barnaby!               I am a long haired white and orange cat that lives here with my sister Willow and our two humans. I'm very handsome. I have a fur ruff around my neck and a small mane around my shoulders. Sophie says I look like a Norwegian Forest cat.                I'm glad I'm not a forest cat. I don't want to live in a forest. One of the best days of my life so far was the day that Sophie and c decided to adopt me. It was almost worth the trip to the vet and the medicine I had to take and the daily ear cleanings I had for two weeks.           Willow wasn't happy that I came to live here. She was mean at first, but then she came around and realized that things would be just fine. Plus she would have someone to chase her. She likes to run.          I like living in a house with our humans. I do...

     Every Thursday I visit my parents. I have a set routine. After a little small talk, Mom and I make cookies, then we prepare lunch, after lunch if weather permits we take a walk and then we work on a craft project.     Now that Mom is living upstairs in the memory care section, things are a little different. There's no need to make cookies as often. Mom eats her meals in the dining area and staff comes to take her if she doesn't go by herself. Now that she eats more regularly, she doesn't eat as many cookies.  Dad also doesn't eat as many. Now we bake cookies every other week.     The big challenge is finding craft projects for her. A friend was coming over and helping her to paint pictures on canvas, but she has been unable to do so for awhile. Mom and I  worked on a paint by number picture and finished it. I had a large diamond painting kit that was given to me. It was a picture of a grey cat with a butterfly on it's nose. Sin...

      Last Wednesday was a busy day for me.  C and I got up early and went to the food shelf  (Storehouse) run by our church to volunteer. People who need food work with their bishops to transmit an order to the Storehouse. Those who live in the area come and fill their own order. Those who live out of town have their order  brought to them. Volunteers pick the items needed and package them in bins which are driven in a refrigerated truck to those outside the metro area.      I've helped at the storehouse before and am always amazed by how organized and efficient it is. The first things we do is pack the dry goods and paper products. Then we pick produce after that we pick dairy. The dry goods get packed into get packed into green bins and those things needing refrigeration are packed in blue. The bags are marked with the name of the town and a designation of who it goes to. No names are used to protect privacy.     The bins are sta...

      C and I had a Valentine's date day today. I have a 12 hour shift on the actual holiday, so celebrating  before or after work is out of the question. Over lunch I was trying to think of something to write about this week. C suggested writing about Valentine's day dates.     There were three that were very memorable for vastly different reasons. The first one was before I got married. It was the day that my boyfriend at the time served me a heart shaped jello for dessert. It had the potential to be a romantic gesture, but it was an anatomically correct heart made with a little evaporated milk and covered in cherry sauce to make it look real. I think I also received a blender as a present that year. The next two were when I was dating and engaged to C. Our first Valentine's Day dinner was at Culver's. C was a house musician and working at a coffee shop. Knowing he didn't make much money, I suggested Culver's as a place to eat. He gave me a lavender glass...

        I've been given more hours at work which has its good and bad sides. The good side is that I get to spend more time at work which is good since I like my job and my coworkers. The bad side is that there is less time to get things done around the house and less time to think of column ideas.          I was thinking of writing about Mariann Edgar Budde, and Episcopal bishop in Washington DC. I've listened to several of her sermons over the years. I even bought one of her books. Much has been said about her sermon a few weeks back at a service for unity. A lot of the comments have been focused on the remarks she addressed to the President near the end of the sermon. I have listened to the entire sermon a couple of times. I wish those quick to criticize would listen to the entire sermon before rendering judgement. That sermon could be delivered to any leader at the beginning of her/ his term. An elected official should be mindful of all t...

      After we checked out of the St James last week, we went for a stroll around town. I wanted to stop at the bakery. Red Wing has a really good one and worth a visit if you are in that part of town. I wanted to get of load of their cranberry walnut bread and maybe some kind of pastry.      As we walked toward the door, there was a large sing advertising paczki (punch-key or poonch -key). According to the internet and the sign on the bakery window, they are a fried, filled pastry of Polish origin. It was a way of using up eggs, milk, butter and sugar before the Lenten fast. They are larger than a typical Bismarck donut and made with richer dough. They are filled with fruit filling, cream, custard or chocolate. They can be frosted or dusted with powder sugar.     I'm always ready to try new things so I looked at the selection when we got inside. There were at least seven different kinds of fillings to choose from. I chose cherry, which is my favo...

     This year I wanted to do something special for C's birthday. We rarely do anything outside of a nice dinner somewhere. Sometimes I had to work on his birthday. Once I got laid off the day before his birthday. I really felt that he deserves something more.     Every time we go to Red Wing, we pass by the St. James Hotel. We've been inside a couple of times to look at exhibits that were there after Thanksgiving. We once had lunch on the patio of a restaurant inside the hotel. We always wondered what it would be like to stay there.     As a birthday present to C, I asked if he'd want to celebrate his birthday by staying at the St. James.  I had most of a week off work so it would be the perfect time. We made the reservation for a room with a whirlpool.     When the time came we packed our bag and headed to Red Wing. We were both excited for our overnight trip. When we got into Red Wing, we stopped at the confectionary for a hot chocola...

      Uncle Joe, my mom's younger brother, passed away early this morning, he was 78. A week ago he suffered a massive stroke, the same type that killed his mother, my grandmother, nearly 37 years earlier. No one was expecting this.      We weren't real close to him or his family as they lived in Virginia and didn't visit often. A few times my cousins were sent to stay on the farm for all or part of the summer. I remember we had some good times. We drove out to Virginia to visit them once when I was seven. All I remember was grandma cooking eggs in an electric skillet in out hotel room and seeing a crab on the beach.     When I graduated from college and got my pharmacist license he made a remark that I was depriving a man of the ability to support his family. It was upsetting to hear him say that. I didn't speak to him for a long time.  I realized much later that the idea of a woman being a pharmacist was an unheard of thing to him. Also I m...

      We were having wonderful time on New Year's Eve. C made the best steak bites he'd ever made. The new cheeseball recipe I'd made was really good. The chip dip mix I made was also tasty. We watched the movie 'Conclave' and had just finished the movie 'Grease'. (The original one with Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta.) I decided it was time to clean the litterbox before we broke out the sparkling juice for a toast.     I turned on the light and walked into the laundry room where the litterboxes are. I noticed a large puddle of water around the hot water heater, furnace pedestal and a corner of the room. I walked out again and told C. The good time we were having came to a grinding halt. The water heater had leaked before, but not this bad. We we planning to purchase another one, but were holding off until after the first of the year. C checked around the hot water heater carefully. When he didn't see anything coming from the bottom of the heater he...

      My alarm went off at 5 AM as it always does. After going to bed at close to 1AM, my first thought was to turn it off and go back to sleep. I couldn't do it. The cats needed to be fed and I didn't want to interrupt my usual morning routine.     I gave each cat half a can of wet food which is their treat twice a week and on holidays. While they ate I took down all our old calendars. We usually have three. Two of them are traditional hanging calendars in the kitchen and in our computer room. The other is a page a day calendar in the kitchen. I buy different page a day calendars every year. This year's calendar is inspiring quotes from women.     I gathered the old calendars up and put them in the recycling bin. Then I put up the new ones and threw any any nonrecyclable packaging.     As most of you who read this know, New Years is my favourite holiday. Last night we celebrated with an assortment of dips, chips, a cheese ball, some vegetabl...