Sign the Pledge, Stand Up for Canada

MP Charlie Angus is circulating a pledge for Canadians to affirm their support of basic core values. Please read and consider signing.

Pledge for Canada | Engagement pour le Canada

Homemade Bread for a Winter's Day

It's been really cold and windy the last few days, the snow sweeping down the road before the wind like a scene out of the Arctic. The perfect day for a good, rich soup and homemade bread.

In a large bowl, put 2 cups of really hot water, 1 T. yeast (not the instant kind), and 1 T. sugar. Let it foam up for a few minutes. Stir/knead in 2 t. salt and 4 c. white flour. It will be a really wet, sticky dough. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let sit for an hour. Oil a cookie sheet with olive oil really well and then pour/scrape the dough into the sheet. Oil your hands so the dough doesn't stick to you and spread the dough out on the sheet with your fingertips, kind of like making a pizza, but thicker. Make sure the surface is lightly oiled with the olive oil. Dust with a mix of your favourite herbs. I like rosemary, sage, garlic powder, parsley, and a little salt. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes until golden. Remove from the sheet before it cools and finish cooling on a rack, or it may stick to your pan. Cut into wedges.

Here's one with some caramalized onions baked in...

To My Grandchildren and Yours

 

To My Grandchildren and Yours

 

World Central Kitchen, nourishing with more than food,

has created safe spaces for children---

with crayon-coloured picket fences,

perimeter of painted blue sky---

a bright border to block out the ravaged gray beyond it.

If I could wield a big enough brush,

I’d paint you a sky and sun big enough

to block out the whole world.

- K

Today We Have Naming of Parts

I've made the decision that from henceforth, the moon shall be called Fred. Tahiti will be renamed Sandy. The Arctic will be called McGillicuddy. And Washington D.C. will be called Pennyforyourthoughts. Please see to it that you all adjust your maps and atlases accordingly.

Thank you to Henry Reed for the title.

Reminder about church renovations blog

I have found that a lot of people who read this blog aren't aware of my other blog about the renovations we're doing to an old church in southwestern Ontario. In case you're interested in following along on that journey, you can find it here:

In general, I don't post the same things on both blogs, but today is an exception, as we go into a new year.

https://buyingachurch.blogspot.com/

Snow! And Courage in the Face of Challenges. And How Not to Let Failure Stop You.

Yesterday was relatively mild and clear, so the hubby and I took a walk around Rattray Marsh for an hour, breathing in the chilly air and gazing "out to sea" over Lake Ontario and greeting everyone's dogs as they passed. I'm glad we got that last walk in, because this morning it's snowing horizontally, big fluffy flakes, with no sign of letting up. The delicious feeling of knowing you have nowhere you have to go and nothing you have to do. I'll likely spend today writing and playing mah jhong.

This morning I watched two YouTube videos made by courageous women that I think were a good, strong way to start off the new year, and I thought I'd share them here. My newly-met friend Erin Pocock talks about trying new, hard things and letting failure strengthen you. Beautiful Unschool Life And PoliticsGirl talks about keeping hold of who you are and what you believe in when facing challenges. PoliticsGirl

I think we'll need both of these concepts in 2025. It's going to be a hard year for a lot of people, we're going to be asked to do hard things we may not know how to do yet, and we'll need to cling to our values and our supportive community to get through it. We'll also need to believe in ourselves and our ability to do impossible things.

Happy Cello Day!

I opened Facebook this morning to find Sandra Boynton's collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma for yesterday's International Cello Day. Sandra Boynton  It was a lovely way to start the day. I have tried lately to start each morning with something uplifting and peaceful, to remind myself that there's still light and beauty in the world. It's too easy to dive right into the despair and chaos of everything that's happening, so it's important to keep some sort of balance.

Yesterday also brought the news of former President Jimmy Carter's passing. Whether or not you agreed with his politics, you can't deny his good character. He had strong morals and ethics and lived up to them. He lived a life of service, of hands-on generosity and genuine compassion. A light truly has gone out of the world with his death, but imagine the joyful reception waiting for him on the other side. He can approach heaven with confidence, I think, knowing he honestly kept his face toward God.

I don't set New Year's Resolutions per se, but I try to draw myself toward a particular theme each year. One year it might be emergency preparedness, another year it might be family history or health. I think the coming year's theme will be Trying to Keep the Light Alive. To focus on promoting the good and savouring the beautiful instead of getting swallowed up in all the evil that's also coming with 2025. It may feel forced and fake at times. I may have to go through a lot of dog poop before I recover the swallowed diamond ring. But I believe it's important to keep digging. Otherwise I'll just finish the year in fetal position under the desk. 

Please join me in looking for the beauty, believing in the inherently good nature of people, and grabbing hold of the positive whenever you can find it. Being kind to neighbours and strangers alike. Allowing others to find beauty too. Promoting peace. Living in such a way that the earth will have a 2026.

(p.s. My tree really did grow like this.)