Orange Rice

1/4 cup butter or margarine 2/3 cup chopped celery 2 tablespooons minced onion 1 tablespoon grated orange peel 1 cup orange juice 1 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 cup water 1 cup regular long-grain rice In medium saucepan over medium heat cook celery and onion in butter, until tender (about 5 minutes). Add 1 1/2 cups water, orange peel, juice, and salt. Heat to boiling; stir in rice; reduce heat to low; cover and simmmer until rice is tender and all liquid is absorbed. Makes 6 servings.

When You Think You Want Something and Then Realize You Don't Want It After All

When I was in elementary and middle school, I was very baby-obsessed. I knew I wanted babies when I got older. I often thought about baby names. I preferred offbeat and unusual names, for I wanted my kids names to be unique. I daydreamed about my future family constantly. I found a baby name booklet that my mother had used when she named me. She and my father looked at my name at the same time and said it aloud at once. So, that's how my name came to be. I wish my mother had thrown that booklet out, but she was a hoarder. I read it and became obsessed with baby names. I marked up that book until it had to be thrown out. I would beg my mother to let me stay at the library when she went to her nurse's meetings, and I would then spend time looking at the baby name books. I can still remember their Dewey numbers of 929.9. I tried to hide this, standing in a corner of the library and sitting on the floor, writing down my favorite names. I also would write down all the name variations I ejoyed as well, as with "Katherine"--Kathryn, Trina...Of course I favored girl's names over boy's names, for I hoped to have all girls, or mostly all girls. I could not hide this obsession completely, for I was found out by my mother. I was at yet another library and took some time getting lost in the stacks. My mother wanted to leave and I was wandering and searching around the shelves. I was not looking a baby names that time, but when I finally found my mother in the common area, she was angry at me and put her face in mine and with venom in her voice, she said "There's more to life than baby names!" She was right. It is normal for a girl to think about the children she may have someday, but it is not all right to spend countless hours thinking of names for them. It is not something to be obsessed with. A new parent should give their child a name that they and their partner both agree on, and a name that works. That's it. I have since looked at baby names now and then online, and I did belong to a Livejournal group about baby names, but that has been all. I knew I had to spend time reading other things. Naming a child is also only a tiny part about parenting. I knew I was baby-obsessed. When I was 10, 11 years old I would sometimes stuff my shirt with clothes so I could pretend to be pregnant. I would find any literature I could about babies, even picking up copies of "Expecting" and "Working Mother" magazines that I found laying around. I was psyched to learn about IVF, GIFT, and other ways to become a mother if I was not able to conceive naturally. I knew I wanted to get married young, and as soon as I could. I started having crushes on boys in 5th grade. I started an obsession with O. on the first day of 5th grade. I thought about him constantly. I knew we would get married someday. I thought I wanted to have sex with him. I hardly knew what sex was then. The other kids in school laughed at both of us, we were the laughingstock of the classroom. Kids would write notes to me and sign his name on them. He was embarrassed that I liked him. I could not stop thinking about him, even though I knew he wasn't interested in me. I finally did give up on that crush after 6th grade. I then decided I liked T. a lot. That crush was not as intense, but I did try to kiss him on the last day of 8th grade. I did finally give up that crush when I went to high school. I had a problem in high school that I wanted to badly to attend an Adventist academy, but my mother could not afford to send my sister and I to one. I was bent on going to Greater Boston Academy. That place had dormitories. I knew some people who went to South Lancaster Academy and that school would have been great. T. attended SLA and O. attended GBA. Could I still have a chance with either of them? I was mostly over O, but still liked T. a lot. I also crushed other boys from those schools. In the end, I went to state-school and never attended SDA schools. I begged my mother to take me to the Worcester church so I could see the boys there. There was P and his brother M and another family of four boys around my age. I hoped to start something with any of them. I stopped going after I was up front in a choir robe with 3 other young people, supposed to be singing, when I saw P. in the pew, making out with E. He had his hand, caressing her shoulders and kissing her. His family was on the other edge of the pew, just looking straight ahead. I could hardly sing. I had a wad of phlegm in my throat and I wanted to cry. I stopped going to that church after that and went back to my former church. Today, only P. goes to church. His brother M. is an atheist. The four boys (the family was heavily into homeschooling) no longer go to church. Unfortunately, one of them was killed in a car accident. Before I was going to the Worcester church, I was spending time hanging out with a little 4,5 year old foster child of some friends of mine. She was HIV+. She died in November 1995, while I was going to the Worcester church. I stopped spending time with dear Gracey because I was obsessed with finding an Adventist boyfriend. I wish I spent more time with my little friend instead of taking off to chase guys around. I also liked Nathaniel a lot. He went to GBA. Nathan did show an interest in me, flirted with me at a camp-meeting when we were 14,15 years old. He hung out each camp-meeting since. He went to GBA. I wanted to go to GBA badly, and I was hoping to have a relationship with him. He started dating T----, who attended middle school with me. I thought that maybe if we attended the same school, we could be dating. But, how did I know that? I fantasized about him a lot. He said he wanted to study Computer Information Systems at Andrews University in Michigan after graduation. I then knew that I wanted to attend Andrews as well! I got my sister to attend with me, so we both went to Andrews University at 18, 19 years old. I was psyched. I hoped to start a romantic relationship with him. I was so thrilled to be on my own and far away from home as well. I should have known better. It was foolish for me to go to a school far, far away to chase a man. He also could have asked me for my phone number that summer at camp-meeting, but he didn't. He could have come to visit me, but he didn't. He was nice to me at Andrews, and did sit with me in the cafeteria a few times. But, he soon started dating someone else, a girl from Ohio. Of course, I was jealous. He was affectionate with her. I remember being in the Fireside Fellowship and seeing them frolicking around in the pillows together. Unfortunately, at the end of our first semester there, he was killed in a car accident. I went to his memorial service and I saw O. there. He refused to speak to me. One of our former classmates said "Hey O---, here's *****!" He ran away from me, literally, right there in the parking lot. That was the last time I was ever in his presence. I was crushed over Nathan's death. I still do miss talking to him at Camp-meetings. I have still gone to some camp-meetings, even just to show up for a day or a few days, and I always remember Nathan. I now realize I never had a chance with him. I should have never gone to Andrews University just to chase him around and hope he would date me. I know that was extremely foolish.

When We Think We Want Something and Then Realize We Don't Want It After All.

When I was in A.P. English Literature in high school, I remember my teacher, Mrs. M., telling an insightful story. She had a friend who had been married and was also childless. This friend wanted a baby very badly and a baby was not happening for her. She was so obsessed with having a baby that the thoughts of becoming a mother consumer her daily thoughts. It got so bad that she could not want past the infant's section of a store without crying. Her husband grew so tired of her, that he divorced her because of her constant depression over not having a baby. She eventually married again and that time she got pregnant! She was so thrilled! Then my teacher did not see this friend again until the child was just turning 2 years old. (That makes me wonder if it was someone who worked at the high school). She asked this friend "How's motherhood?" The friend then replied: "I hate it! This is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and I have no time to myself!" My teacher then said to the class that she wanted to slap her. It is tragic that her friend spent so much time feeling sorry for herself because of not being a mother. She cried so many years, had sleepless nights, and lost her first marriage. And then, when she finally became a mother, she did not like how difficult parenting is. She obviously never thought things through, did not think about what being a parent meant. It would not surprise me if that second marriage also failed, with her misery over being a mother. Parenting is about self-sacrifice and lots of dedication. A parent's life is never their own and that never stops, even when their kids become adults. I know that in my own life I have wanted many things. I wanted to live abroad. I lived in South Korea for a few years. I liked living in South Korea very much and I miss it a lot. Unfortunately, I did not like teaching English as a Second Language. I did not like classroom management. I also did not take to the Korean culture very well at all. I did not like how Koreans are often not direct with their communication, for they prefer to "save face" with people. I would rather have people tell me like it is. Yet, that is because of my own culture. I am glad I lived abroad, but it was not all that I had hoped it would be. I was also obsessed with finding a boyfriend and getting married. I wanted to get married so badly all my life. Even when I was a child I knew I would go off to a good Seventh-day Adventist college or university and then marry a nice guy I would meet there, if I didn't already know him in high school. I would get married before graduating college or just after graduation, and we would immediately start a family. Then, we were hopefully going to serve as missionaries for a while and eventually settle back in the United States and send our 4 or 5 children to Adventist schools. We would then have grandchildren and continue being active in our church. Well, none of that happened. I am now 43 years old, never had any meaningful romantic relationship, have no children, and have been sporadically employed. I never focused enough on career development when I was younger, for I was so obsessed with getting married. I was also indecisive and let my family run my life. I should have did whatever I could to be on my own and stay on my own. I realized that ADHD and mild autism have affected these goals. I now wonder, if I did get married and have a family, how would it have worked out? What if I had all those things for them to not work out anyway? If I had chosen another country other than South Korea to live in, would things have been better? WOuld my marriage been happy? Would I have had the family I had envisioned? Would I have been a good wife and mother? I have to admit that I don't like working with children. I never liked baby-sitting. I hated working at the summer camp when I was 20 years old. I hated teaching the young kids in Korea. Would I really want children of my own? I also no longer believe in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. I realized that in July 2010, when I was in Seoul on a hot day and reading my Bible alone in my apartment in Sangbong. I had just gone through a lot of stress and was reading Daniel 8 to see if I really did believe in the SDA church after all. I know that the whole Adventist Church is based on the Millerite moveent of the 1840s. The Adventists then took that movement to be the Investigative Judgment. The book of Daniel's account of a vision of the Ram and Goat talks about a military takeover, not the Second Coming of Christ. I then abandoned Adventism. I wish I had done so many years earlier. I still show up at my old church and some SDA events sometimes to see old friends and family. I can't agree with all their theology anymore. I should eventually get my name taken off the books, but that will have to wait a few years. It will happen. I wish I hadn't wasted so much of my time trying to only find a Adventist man to date and marry. I wish I didn't attend Adventist schools. I wish I didn't think I only had to attend SDA schools, volunteer with Adventists, and work for Adventists. I am glad for change. I wish I never had to put up with this organization for so long.

Thinking of the Events of 10 Years Ago

Ten years ago in September I lost my Aunt Charlotte. She had a heart attack after we came home from a local fair. It was strange to lose my aunt. Nine years later I would lose my mother. Now I am alone in the house. Ten years ago this Saturday will make 10 years since Hurricane Sandy struck the area. I remember the wind howling. It would have been my Aunt Charlotte's birthday, but she had just died on September 2. I was thinking that if she were alive we would have been eating birthday cake in the midst of the hurricane. Instead, we were in the house and being boed. My mother made me take the dogs outside in the storm. This December will make 10 years since the Sandy Hook massacre. That was very sad. I feel upset that such a thing happened.

Ten Republican Politicians Who Voted to Impeach Trump.

These 10 politicians who voted to impeach Donald Trump have ruined their political careers. Most of them are not seeking reelection or else have lost elections to other people. 1. Peter Meijer lost his seat in 2022 to John Gibbs. 2. John Katko is not seeking reelection. 3. John Valadao, incumbent. 4. Jaime Herrera, incumbent. 5. Anthony Gonzalez, not seeking reelection. 6. Fred Upton, not seeking reelection. 7. Adam Kinzinger, not seeking reelection. 8. Dan Newhouse, incumbent. 9. Tom Rice, lost reelection to Russell Fry in 2022. 10. Liz Cheney, incumbent, but has no future in the Republican party.

My Garden Seeds! (April 23, 2014)

Flowers: 1. Bachelor Button (Blue Boy) 2. Bachelor Button (Cyanus Double Mixed Colors) 3. Canna (Yellow and Orange) (on route) 4. Clemon x24 (on route) 5. Cosmos ( pink ) (on route) 6. Crape myrtle (Pink) (on route) 7. Crape myrtle (Purple) (on route) 8. Double Holly Hocks (pinks, reds, burgundy, & black mix) (0n route) 9. Falso Dragonhead (on route) 10. Four O'clocks (pink) 11. Four O'clocks (White) 12. Iris (Yellow) (on route) 13. Marigold (Petite Yellow) 14. Moonflowers (white) 15. Moss Rose (on route) 16. Petunia (Purple) (on route) 17. Purple Passion Flower Vine 18. Rose of Sharon (Purple) 19. Texas Star Morning Glories 20. Tiger lilies (Double bloom oriental) (on route) 21. Zinnia (White Polar Bear) (on route) Vegetables & Fruits: 22. Amaranth (Molten Fire) 23. Amaranth, Red (Love-Lies-Bleeding) 24. Beans, Bush (Black Turtle) (on route) 25. Beans, Bush (Contenders) 26. Bean, Bush (Royal Burgundy) (on route) 27. Beans, Bush (Top crop) 28. Bean, pole (Blue lake) 29. Beans, Pole (French Purple) (on route) 30. Bean, pole (Kentucky Wonder) 31. Broccoli (Calabrese) 32. Broccoli (Waltham) (on route) 33. Cabbage (Early Round Dutch) (on route) 34. Cantaloupe (Honey Rock) 35. Carrots (Cosmic Purple) (on route) 36. Carrots (Juane De Daubs) (on route) 37. Carrots (Imperator) 38. Carrots (Nantes Coreless) 39. Cauliflower (Purple of Sicily) 40. Cauliflower (White) (on route) 41. Celery (Utah tall) 42. Chard (Peppermint) 43. Chard (Rainbow) 44. Cherry (Dark Sweet) (on route) 45. Collards (Georgia) (on route) 46. Collards (Vates) 47. Corn (Colored) 48. Corn (Illini Sweet) 49. Corn (Native White) 50. Cucumber (Boston Pickling) 51. Cucumber (Burpless Muncher) 52. Cucumber (Delicatesse) 53. Cucumber (Lemon) 54. Cucumber (National Pickling) (on route) 55. Dragon Fruit (on route) 56. Eggplant (Black Beauty) 57. Eggplant (Ukrainian Beauty) (on route) 58. Endive (Green Curled) (on route) 59. Honey Dew Melons (on route) 60. Kale (Blue Scotch) (on route) 61. Lettuce (Black seeded Simpson) 62. Lettuce (Buttercrunch) 63. Lettuce (Cinnamon) (on route) 64. Lettuce (Grand Rapids) (on route) 65. Lettuce (Prize head) 66. Lettuce (Iceberg) 67. Lettuce (Red Romaine) 68. Millet (Pearl) (on route) 69. Mustard (Broadleaf) (on route) 70. Okra (Clemson Spineless) 71. Okra (Stelley) 72. Onion (Sweet Spanish Yellow) 73. Pear (on route) 74. Peas (Green arrow) 75. Peas (Sugar) (on route) 76. Pepper, (Anaheim) 77. Pepper, (Banana, hot) (on route) 78. Pepper, (Banana, sweet) (on route) 79. Pepper, (Bell, Black) (on route) 80. Pepper, (Bell,Orange) 81. Pepper, (Bell, White) (on route) 82. Pepper, (Bhut Jolokia) 83. Pepper, (Big Jim Chili) 84. Pepper, (Datil) 85. Pepper, (Filius Blue) 86. Pepper, (Golden Marconi) 87. Pepper, (Hungarian Yellow Hot Wax) 88. Pepper, (Italian Pepperoncini) 89. Pepper, (Jalapeno) (on route) 90. Pepper, (Joe E. Parker) 91. Pepper, (Kurt's Gate) (on route) 92. Pepper, (Lemon Drop) 93. Pepper, (Moshi) 94. Pepper, (Red Feferona (Serbian chili) (on route) 95. Pepper, (Serrano chili) 96. Pepper, (Tabasco) 97. Pepper, (Thai Red Chili) (on route) 98. Pepper, (Thai Yellow Chili) 99. Pepper, (Yellow Feferona ( Serbian chili) (on route) 100. Pumpkin (Giant) 101. Pumpkin (Jack O Lantern) 102. Pumpkin (Sweet Sugar Pie) 103. Radish (French Breakfast) 104. Radish (Scarlet Globe) 105. Rudbeckia (Black Eyed Susan) (on route) 106. Spinach (Blackbird) (on route) 107. Spinach (Bloomsdale Longstanding) (on route) 108. Squash (Acorn) 109. Squash (Butternut) 110. Squash (Peter Pan Scalloped) (on route) 111. Squash (Red Kari) 112. Squash (Spaghetti) 113. Squash (Straight Neck Summer) (on route) 114. Tendergreens (Spinach Mustard) 115. Tomato (Beefsteak) (on route) 116. Tomato (Cherokee) (on route) 117. Tomato (Cherry Red) 118. Tomato (Goliath) (on route) 119. Tomato (Homestead) 120. Tomato (Missouri) (on route) 121. Tomato (Pink Blush Long Keeper) (on route) 122. Tomato (Roma) 123. Tomato (Yellow Pear) 124. Turnip (Purple White Top Globe) 125. Watermelon (Danka) (on route) 126. Watermelon (Orange Glo) 127. Watermelon (Rocky Ford) 128. Watermelon (Sugar baby) 129. Watermelon (Yellow) (on route) 130. Zucchini (Black) (on route) 131. Zucchini (Dark Green) (on route) 132. Zucchini (Grey) Herbs: 133. Angelica 134. Basil (Cinnamon) 135. Basil (Dark Opal) (on route) 136. Basil (Genovese) 137. Basil (Sweet Italian) 138. Basil (Purple opal) 139. Basil (Thai) 140. Bee Balm (Lemon) 141. Catnip (Nepeta cataria) 142. Chives (Garlic) 143. Cilantro (Indian Dhannat) 144. Dill (Bouquet) 145. Dill (Mammoth) (on route) 146. Lavender (Tall English) 147. Lovage (on route) 148. Marjoram (on route) 149. Oregano 150. Parsley (Triple curled) 151. Peppermint (on route) 152. Rosemary (Rosemarinus officinalis) 153. Sage (Blue) (on route) 154. Sage (Salvia officinalis) 155. Sage (Scarlet) (on route) 156. Savory (summer) 157. Thyme (Winter) 158. White Clover 159. Yarrow DANNY KING

Will There Be Another Shutdown?

I have been wondering if there will be another shutdown when the weather gets cold again. I have noticed that the newer COVID-19 variants are not always compatible with the current vaccines or past COVID-19 infections. These variants may be milder than the previous strains, though. I am not sure what will happen. I am not going to worry about it too much, though. I do want to be prepared in case of a shutdown, for I do not want to have to go out much. I do hope that all this will be over instead. We can all hope that COVID-19 will become like the seasonal flu or the common cold. In fact, the current influenza strains are all child strains of the Spanish Influenza of 1918-1920. How should I prepare? Well, I think the best way is to stock up on things that I will need. That will ensure that I will not have to go out much. I think I should stock up on some things now, just in case I will be caught up in another shutdown. We may all be lucky and not have to deal with that again. I do hope so. Thankfully, Walmart has no-contact pick-up, which is great. Things I will need: 1. Medicine. That will be helpful. Medicines like liquid tylenol and Day-Quil will be great. The cat also needs medicine from the vet. 2. Toilet paper. The obvious, that is what people were hoarding last time. 3. Pet supplies. I will need cat and dog food. That can be easily delivered to the house or picked up. 4. Clothes. I do have enough clothes for now. I should not worry about that. 5. Drinks: Tea, spiced cider, Gatorade. I should get some milk that I can put on the shelf, so I do not have to keep going out for it. I can get the rice or almond milk, or even macadamia or hemp milk that can be on the shelf for a few months before use. 6. Non-perishable food, such as cereals, pasta mixes, and anything canned. Dried fruit and nuts should also be great. 7. I have enough bedding, dinnerware, and books. The internat can be entertainment. I do want to buy a chest freezer to freeze a lot of things. That will be great.