With lightning and thunder more rampant in the Midwest than in the West, I sometimes wish I had the power to tell the storm “just go away!” Much easier said than done though.
My focus during the storms is away from myself and at what is happening around me. I should probably buy stock in weather.com as I continually check it to see how close the storm will be and how soon it will arrive. It’s helpful because it gauges within 6 hours what will happen.
But life does not have a built-in weather.com. No — life’s storms come and our focus turns outward to the things happening around us. Death, disability, unemployment, greed, sickness, over-spending, divorce, etc. etc… Â Some storms are caused by how we live while others just happen to show up on our doorstep and say “Just coming to visit for awhile.”
What response do you have when “they” come whether invited or uninvited? Honestly I usually get frazzled and my brain goes haywire for awhile. Â Until …
“Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: … ”  Job 38:1
Yes, I have to stop and listen to God while the sky lights up like flickering lights, thunder crashes as if someone is bowling with clouds in heaven  and rains pummel the ground.
I’m learning that it’s all a matter of perspective. I can run to and fro and call this person and that one for advice or I can just stop and listen to what God has to say to me while in the storm.
All storms bring a blessing. It’s true! We may not see the blessing immediately because our vision is focused on everything that’s going wrong but in the end, there is a blessing.
The old adage “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade” is perfect when one is trying to change their perspective on how to deal with problems that are hurled at us. Ever done that? Make lemonade from lemons? Just add a teaspoon of sugar and whala!
Look and listen for the blessings because they are surely there — even if the world feels like it’s crumbling around you.
Where have the “good ol’ days” gone? Remember when people would ring the doorbell and come into your house and visit?
Mailbox
Remember when you looked forward to getting mail because it might contain a card from Aunt Mabel or Cousin Samantha?
No email, Facebook, Myspace or Twitter existed in the “old days.” It was a more simple time when visiting on the front porch with family or neighbors was an every day event.
We should strive to bring back those one-on-one face-to-face connections that gave more meaning to the word “relationship.”
The first time I went to the Space Needle restaurant was over 20 years ago and it was expensive but not impressive. One time was enough until recently when friends of mine decided to take my husband and I along with another couple to dinner. This restaurant would not have been my first choice but since they were paying for everything we went along.
Parking in the area is available at the many pay-by-the-hour parking lots but we decided to splurge and have the Space Needle valet service make the parking spot hunt non-existent. We were not disappointed. At $8 (for those who are eating at the restaurant) it was a bargain. The valet service starts at the entry to the Space Needle.
My husband and I, along with one couple, arrived 45 minutes early and we were not allowed to check in until all six of our party was accounted for. Checking in was a breeze at that point and we were handed a “buzzer” that would alert us when our table was ready. Until then, we headed up to the observation deck to take in the views.
Lake Union View, Seattle, WAQueen Anne Neighborhood View, Seattle, WAAnother view of Lake Union
The day was quite cloudy — a typical Seattle day, although being July I expected sunshine.
Puget Sound, Seattle, WA
After 20 minutes or so, our buzzer went off and we headed down one flight of stairs to the restaurant. When we arrived the hostess was bustling around trying to find a table for us. My friend had requested a table by the window and they didn’t have any available.
Normally this would not have been an issue but an elderly woman in our party was using a walker. They bustled us to one place, then another and then … I got annoyed. All the movement was not good for our physically challenged friend. Then we waited. And waited. Another 15 minutes.
We finally were seated next to a window and our waitress gave us the menu. She was polite but I could tell she was in a hurry. My guess is that she had too many tables to wait on. Oh well …
We ordered Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider so we could toast this occasion — a 50th wedding anniversary (3 years late), my 55th birthday (a few days early) and a goodbye to our friends who are moving to Arizona.
I was in for a pleasant surprise when I tasted the Martinelli’s. It was delicious! Normally I don’t like sparkling cider because there is too much carbonization but that was not the case. Can cider become better with age or what could be the reason this one tasted so good? My family usually had cider for the holidays but the taste of this Martinelli’s surpassed any I’d ever had.
Next we ordered two appetizers. One was a salmon “crab” cake which was more like a salmon loaf and the second was the Rustic Flat Bread which was delicious.
Rustic Flat Bread
And then we waited for the entrees to come. And waited. One thing I have learned in my almost 55 years of living is that the “finer” restaurants allow you to take your time at meals. But this seemed a little longer than what I expected.
By the time the food arrived we were ready to devour it. When the waitress put the plates in front of each person I could see disappointment in one of my friends eyes. Portion sizes were really small. The beef tenderloin that my friend ordered tasted wonderful but the baby carrots were a disappointment. There were, maybe, 5 little tiny carrots. The same was true with most of the other entrees in terms of the vegetables.
The portion size was enough to fill you if you weren’t overly hungry. I was happy with my entree — the Anderson Ranch Lamp Chops. Not much meat on the bones but it sure was tender. I had to pick the bone up though and bite the small bits of meat off or I wouldn’t have had much of a meal as the knife would not cut into the corners very well. (Yes, not proper etiquette but I was a hungered! laughing)
Anderson Ranch Lamb Chops
Perhaps the reason they don’t give you too much food is so you can have some of their yummy dessert! I can’t remember the name of mine and it’s not on their website but the inside had a chocolate filling and the outside tasted very light and it all melted in your mouth. My mouth waters just thinking about it.
Sky City Restaurant, Space Needle dessert
We had a good time even though service was a bit slow. I was chagrined to see that the Sky City Restaurant has a minimum food and beverage charge of $35 per person. I guess it doesn’t matter since the cheapest dinner entree I could find was $38.
Well worth it though. A definite five star dinner but three stars for the service.
Yes folks, it’s happening right here in our area as reported by our local paper, The Washington County Star Tribune, in the  “police blotter” section. Gotta love it!
Two men and one woman fishing on Lake Olson reportedly caught a big bass and put it in their livewell rather than release it.
Police were unable to locate two people on a personal watercraft reportedly driving recklessly in a no-wake zone on the St. Croix River south of the Hudson Bridge.
An officer helped the owner of a herd of buffalo put them back into a fenced area on 170th Street west of Parade Avenue.
Police checked on a report of a helicopter hovering near Big Carnelian Lake.
Two people were issued written warnings for drinking beer on the beach of Little Carnelian Lake at Stillwater Township Park.
A driver was cited for failing to move over a lane when he had room while driving by a traffic stop on Hwy. 36 near Demontreville Trail.
Who would have thought that I would find a recipe for fried chicken and onions while sitting at a restaurant waiting for breakfast to be served? That’s exactly what happened and I am glad it did as this recipe is really really delicious. You must try it! I halved the recipe for two reasons: 1) I didn’t want leftovers because 2) there were only two who would be eating and I didn’t want us to overeat (we’re not very good at eating leftovers).
Ingredients:
5 chicken legs or thighs
1/2 large yellow onion, sliced into rings
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
Salt (to taste)
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Vegetable oil
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the chicken, onion, buttermilk, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne and salt
Cover bowl and set aside for at least 30 minutes
In a paper bag (or bowl) combine the flour, black pepper and a dash of onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne and salt (the small amounts of the powders are not included in the ingredients)
In a large heavy skillet (I used our electric skillet), heat the oil over medium high heat until very hot. (On the electric skillet I set it at 350 degrees fahrenheit). The oil should be deep enough to cover the chicken halfway
Drain the chicken and onion rings then add them to the flour mixture until they are coated
Transfer the chicken to the skillet but make sure you don’t overcrowd it
Fry turning occasionally for 10 minutes on one side
Turn to fry the other side of the chicken for an additional 10 minutes and add the onion rings at this time
Fry until the chicken is golden brown and fully cooked.
Drain the chicken and onion rings on a wire rack or paper towels
Clean the chicken
Slice onion into rings
Coat the onion rings in the flour mixture
Coat the chicken in the flour mixture
Add the chicken & onion rings to the buttermilk mixture
Add oil to skillet
Fried Chicken and Onion Rings
Melon & Blueberry Salad
Exceptions from the original recipe:
I did not sprinkle parsley on the chicken once it cooked as I decided not to bother purchasing a bunch of parsley only to use a little bit
I fried the chicken 10 minutes on each side instead of the 10-14 minutes per side as I find that chicken sometimes overcooks the longer you fry/bake it and then it’s tough
It’s not every day that I find a recipe that has the nutritional information but this one did so here it is:
Serves 5 (only if you each have one piece of chicken)
300 calories per serving
4 grams carbs
30 grams protein
17 grams fat
105 mg cholesterol
100 mg sodium
0 grams fiber
I served this with garlic mashed potatoes and a blueberry melon salad. Enjoy!
This recipe was found in the Parade “Sunday Dinner” section dated July 1, 2012 and was perfected by the singer, Norah Jones.
Our Washington County park permit does not expire until September so we went venturing out to check out the Big Marine Park Reserve. The permit allows us to bypass the main office to register.
Upon entering the park we noticed that everywhere we looked the park was well maintained.
Big Marine Park Reserve
The park has a boat launch which was being used but the path to the beach was under water. There is also a fishing pier available to fishermen.
Big Marine Park ReserveBoat Launch
The park has ample picnic shelters with charcoal grills, tennis courts and even a place to play horseshoe.
Picnic SheltersTennis CourtsHorseshoe anyone?
It took awhile for us to find the path that led us to the view of the St. Croix River as it was not clearly marked. We were a little disappointed that the view is somewhat obscured by trees.
A bridge to the nature pathView of the St. Croix River
As we were walking we noticed an evergreen tree that looked like a weeping willow. Anyone know what the name of it is?
“Weeping Willow” Evergreen
Although we were there in the early afternoon on a beautiful sunny day, few people were frequenting the park (with the exception of one large group).
This would be a good place to have a family reunion as they also have a playground for children.
The park is located at 17495 Manning Trail, Marine on St. Croix, MN.
I enjoy barley. From “regular” barley to barley cereal, it has a taste that has always appealed to me. Â This salad is really good IF you like barley. If you’ve never had it before then I would try the recipe and see what you think. Barley has a “smooth” texture in your mouth after its cooked.
Ingredients (for the salad)
1 cup barley
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped and toasted
1 pear, peeled, cored and chopped
1/4 cup raisins, soaked in hot water for 5 minutes
1 bunch parsley, chopped
3 cups vegetable bouillon
(for the dressing)
2 tablespoons walnut oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons agave or maple syrup (I used the agave)
1 generous teaspoon vegetable bouillon powder
Directions
Cook the barley in 3 cups vegetable bouillon until the barley is soft.
When the barley is cooked (about 1/2 hour), drain the excess liquid and place the barley in a bowl.
Cool the barley in the refrigerator.
Place the raisins in a small bowl and cover with boiling water.
Chop the walnuts and toast them in a dry frying pan, stirring constantly to keep from burning. (The alternative is to toast them in the oven for about 8 minutes at 350 degrees.)
Finely chop the leafy parts of the parsley.
Mix the ingredients for the dressing and season it to your taste with salt and pepper.
Remove the barley from the refrigerator.
Mix in the walnuts.
Drain the excess water from the raisins and add them to the salad.
Mix in the parsley and stir the dressing over the top a little at a time and taste it until you like the consistency.
Peel the pear and slice it then chop the slices into small pieces.
Add the pear pieces to the salad and mix.
Serve the salad cooled, but at room temperature.
That’s it! I made this salad for two but it easily feeds 4 and possibly 6 if you have it as a side to another dish. Â Yum!
I have never experienced a lightning storm like the one we had last night. Everything was quiet and then all of a sudden it looked like a light was flickering outside. I looked out one window, then another and then another. The “light” looked the same no matter where in the house I was.
It was eerie and quiet. No thunder could be heard. Only the flickering lightning in the sky could be seen.
After 45 minutes or so, I could hear rolling thunder far away. The winds stopped blowing and the trees remained still. A sudden burst of rain fell and then — nothing.
Everything stopped as quickly as it had started.
Moving to a different part of the U.S. has given me many new experiences.
While living in Seattle, I attended a small Seventh-day Adventist church with a membership that was between 20 and 30 people. The members were simple folk who loved God and tried to live their lives showing kindness and love to those they met. Occasionally, we would get visitors who would drop in to worship with us. Some visitors came to intentionally upset the church service and on a recent trip to Seattle I was reminded of these visitors. They came in a large school bus with writing all over it. It was always a man and woman, I presume married, and on occasion an older child. We never knew when to expect them — winter, summer, spring, fall. And every time they came, I cringed.
Un-Christian School Bus
It’s not that we didn’t want to be friendly or loving but my gut felt like it was being twisted because of the negative messages on the bus and the way they would come into the church, stand up and disrupt the speaker or class that was in progress.
The words on the front of the bus weren’t a problem.
But some of the other phrases were not friendly and are not in line with what Christians believe. God as our Father is not intent on “smoking” us much like human parents don’t “smoke” their children because they smoke.
And apparently, the bus is for sale … at $112,000.
Un-Christian Bus for Sale
The family that visited the church never really wanted to have discussion around their beliefs but assumed we were all close-minded and called us unloving. Their message was/is of a vengeful God — a God who is waiting for one misstep on a human’s part in order to zap us. At least that’s what the various phrases on the bus state and what we were admonished about.
I don’t know if this family has had any success reaching anyone with the true message of Christ — that God sent Him into the world to save and not to condemn — because their messages reek of condemnation.
No, I would never consider buying this bus with its message of an unloving vengeful God. Surely we can do better than that in portraying what God sent His Son to show us — that He truly loves and and was willing to allow His Son to die for us unworthy and selfish humans.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”  John 3:16, 17
On the last day of my vacation in Seattle, the weather cooperated enough for me and my husband to take a drive to Shilshole Beach — one of my favorite places to take a walk.
The Shilshole area has a marina and beach that have shelters you can rent with grills and picnic tables. I was surprised that on a Thursday afternoon, parking was hard to find.
The view looking across the Puget Sound waters was absolutely breathtaking but not unexpected as the Olympic Mountains have always taken my breath away.
Olympic Mountain View from Shilshole BeachView of Olympic MountainsShilshole Beach Breakers
The tide was out — I mean, really out. In the almost 30 years that I lived in Seattle, I never have seen the tide out so far.
Shilshole Beach – Tide OutShilshole Sandy Beach
There were so many cars and people here most likely because Seattle has been pretty cool through the spring and early summer (lots of rain) and people hunger for the sun when it finally comes out.
Shilshole Beach
The weather in Seattle tempts me to move back when we have sweltering heat in Minnesota. But then I think about the traffic, the over population and the rest of the year when the weather is not so great. Compare that to the almost traffic free Twin Cities and Minnesota is hands down the winner. And let’s not forget “Minnesota nice.”
I remember telling my husband “Seattle is almost as bad as Chicago already.” While living there we just didn’t realize how bad it actually had gotten. But I did leave wonderful friends behind, along with a son, so Seattle will continue to be a place to visit.
[/amazon_link]
[/amazon_link]
