Help! I Have to Fly!

My parents live in Southern California and have been asking me for months to come for a visit.  I have put it off as long as I can, and now will be flying on Saturday for a week long visit.  When TSA began their new offensive groping and the X-ray machines came into play, I swore I would NEVER fly again.  But how can I say no to my aging parents?  They even paid for the ticket!  Neither are in really good health, they are both cancer survivors.  I would never forgive myself if something happened and I missed out on spending time with them simply because of the TSA.  So I am going to "bite the bullet" and fly. You might say a prayer for me.

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll be back in about ten days.

First Trip To The LDS Cannery

For months we have wanted to go to the LDS Cannery in Portland.  They are open to non-members on Tuesday and Thursday every week.  I have been furloughed one week per month since last June, so I am able to go to the cannery during my "off" week.  Tim, however, had to schedule a day off work to go with me.  Yesterday was the big day. 

I printed off the order form and we filled it out before we went.  We thought we knew what to expect since we watched the You-Tube video on using the equipment.  But when we went inside they took our order form and we could see the canning room was full of people.  We thought we would just have to wait our turn.  Then a man asked Tim to help box orders around the other side of the room.  He said sure, and off he went.  Another man asked me if I would wash and sterilize the big tubs they use in the canning room.  I agreed and he showed me where the big sink was.

Every time I finished a load of tubs they brought me another one.  Finally I asked the man how much longer he thought it would be before we got to go in the canning room.  He smiled and began explaining how things work there.  He told me that all of the orders had been sent into the canning room and the folks in there were canning everyone's orders.  He said that all the people that have orders are either inside the room canning, or outside filling orders and helping out in other ways. 

That made total sense when I thought about it.  It was much easier for them to can all of the orders for one product (like dry milk) at one time, then move on to the next item.

All in all we had a very good time. It was a rewarding experience to be able to give help where needed, especially since others were doing the canning of our order for us.  I am looking forward to going back.  I don't know when that will be because it is not easy for Tim to get a Tuesday or Thursday off work.

So, our home storage pantry is looking much better these days!  We still have a long ways to go, but I am feeling much better now that the shelves are filling up.

Thanks for stopping by!

Through Wind, Snow, Sleet, Hail, and ?

This sign has been on the door of our local Post Office for several days now.  (Sorry the picture is fuzzy - I took it with my phone.)  Good to know my bills will still be delivered to my PO Box! 

Thanks for stopping by.

Sourdough Bread

Have you ever made sourdough bread?  When we bought my stand mixer from a young couple off of Craig's List, she gave me some of her "sourdough starter".  She said she had been "feeding" it for a whole year and I was pretty impressed.  I took it home and fed it just like she instructed me and have made some tasty things with it, including sourdough pancakes - YUM! 

Anyway, I was doing a search on sourdough recipes one day and came across a blog that mentioned Friends of Carl free sourdough starter.  I decided to look it up and I was floored.  The story is fabulous.  Carl Griffith's starter came from the Oregon Trail in 1847 and it is still being produced and shared freely today.

If you are interested, you can follow the link above and find out how to get your own with just a stamped self-addressed envelope.  Mine took about 4 weeks to get here from the time I mailed my request.

They send you a snack sized ziploc bag with dried starter in it.  You can print off instructions from the website on how to reconstitute it.  It works!  Today I made sourdough pancakes using some of it. I am not a big fan of regular pancakes because I don't like the gritty feeling they leave in my mouth, and I always feel crummy after eating them.  I think they swell up or something.  Anyway, sourdough pancakes are different.  They are awesome.  Really.

Next I'm going to try sourdough bread.   I'll try to remember to take pictures :)

Thanks for stopping by!