Trying a new pattern . . .

 I enjoy doing the railroad pattern for quilts using straight bars of fabric. When I saw this one, it appealed to my abstract nature and I immediately started going through my scraps and cutting out a multitude of pieces to start a quilt. I like that it is the same but different and the pattern lends itself to the colors. Good thing, however, that I'm being treated to a trip to the fabric warehouse soon as I'm am out of sufficient fabric to provide a back to my quilts. This trip, I am going to take a square from each of my unfinished quilts so I remember which ones need help and what colors I need to complete them. I tend to enjoy the planning stage more than the finishing stage so will be stern with myself . . . probably.

My Warning of the Day . . .

Both my daughters are trying to find work which, as you can imagine, isn't easy in this economy. I noticed some on-line job sites and decided to check them out in case they might list something along the lines of their work experience. On all three sites, before you could look at the listings, they had page after page of ads for furthering your education through the various 'colleges' they advertise on television. I faithfully hit the 'skip' button for each and every one. However, before I even got to looking at the list of jobs, the phone rang and it was one of those colleges wanting to help me further my education. I nicely said that I wasn't interested and had not expressed an interest and hung up. That day I must have gotten eight calls!

It has been about five days and I'm still getting two to six calls re. my educational goals. Just giving everyone a head's up to expect this regardless of whether you hit the 'skip' button or not! Did I find any jobs? Nope! And the listings didn't even match up with the experience information I had provided. Hey, I should get my daughters jobs disabling the 'skip' buttons for those companies. Obviously, it is an onging occupation!

Lizard Season!

 While we dread the heat of the forthcoming summer months, Chick loves them because it brings out the lizards she tries so hard to catch. She has been successful, upon occasion, but usually the lizards win. If Chick had sticky feet, I'm sure she would easily clamber up the brick walls, too.

Chick nicely posed for some picture updates but revealed her real feelings on the subject in the first picture. She tries so hard to be a good dog but enough is enough with the picture taking!

Checking out the Sunshine . . .

 We are promised triple-digit temperatures by Saturday. I decided to spend some time in the backyard while my son mowed the lawn to see what was new in the garden. The bees were very busy in  our orange blossoms which is a good thing for future fruit. Our lemon tree still has one foot (root?) in the last season as it sports a few lemons yet midst the new blossoms. Even our new orange tree is trying to keep up and has a multitude of blossoms and tiny little oranges hoping to make it to maturity.

Ready for Mass . . . Prayer Book, Rosary . . . hand cleaner?

As I've posted in the past, I like to follow the Rubrics set forth for participating in the celebration of the Mass. As many of you are aware, holding hands at the Our Father is an illicit gesture and not really a part of the Mass.  At our parish, it seems to be the moment everyone is waiting for, however. The Sign of Peace is just that, a sign and, as our pastor explained, your feet shouldn't travel during the Sign of Peace and it is sufficient to greet the person on either side of you. If you go further afield, you are greeting people and greeting belongs outside of Mass. Again, at our parish and probably many others, it is the signal for people to dash across the aisle and happily meet up with people they have just greeted on their way into church. Often, the priest has progressed to the Lamb of God and people are still calling out greetings and flashing peace signs.

My family and close friends try to observe the Rubrics and we just turn to each other, nod and smile, and say, "Peace." If people turn their back on the altar where Jesus is now present, we don't disrespect them but nod and go back to our prayer book. If our pew mates try to grab our hands during the Our Father, we just make sure to have our hands occupied with our prayerbook. That reminds me of a time when I still had a baby in arms and the people of either side were desperate to hold hands and they both made a strong grab for my hands totalling ignoring the fact that my baby would have hit the floor if I hadn't fought for my dignity and my baby's well being!

I did have to laugh this past Sunday. There is a very active group of 'greeters' and hand holders that usually occupy the front pews. They went through their lengthy ritual of playing 'twister' as they tried to made hand contact throughout the group. The Sign of Peace and they were all over the place, wandering hither and yon to make sure no hand was left untouched. During the Lamb of God, I suddenly noticed a medicinal smell. About ten of them were passing around a bottle of hand cleaner! Hey, you either trust in the Lord that your Sign of Peace will not pass on germs or you don't.

A pastor tried to guilt me once about my refusal to hold hands at the Our Father and said that if someone offers to hold your hand, you should be Christian and not turn them down. My husband said that if someone sees that you do not want to hold hands, they should be Christian and not force their personal rubrics upon you.

It is kind of sad that the beauty of the Mass tends to get lost in people making personal decisions about how they want to celebrate it and then demanding others follow their suit.

Chicken Salad Sandwiches in Anticipation of Summer . . .

After last week's cold and rain, the temperatures are going up into the 90's around here. Although I'm not particularly fond of the hot weather, it is a good excuse to make a cold dinner and get out of the kitchen sooner. A favorite around here are homemade chicken salad sandwiches. I usually keep hamburger buns in the freezer for just such an occasion but am not adverse to making my own . . . depending on how soon in the day I set the bread to rise and how hot it actually gets today.

Chicken Salad
3 cups diced, cooked chicken
2 cups very thinly sliced or diced celery
1 small shallot, finely diced or 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
Dijon mustard to taste, usually a teaspoon or two
Salt & pepper to taste
Thousand Island dressing
Romaine lettuce, washed and patted dry
Sliced tomatoes
Sliced Provolone Cheese
Hamburger buns aod desired bread choice

In a mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients except for the Romaine. The Thousand Island dressing should moisten not drench the chicken.

Toast the buns or bread lightly. Line each side of the bread with Romaine and add the tomato and cheese on one side. Spread with the chicken salad, close the sandwich, and serve.

As usual, this is open to creativity.
Try dill pickle relish instead of the sweet.
Add some crushed croutons or potato chips to the chicken salad.
Try you favorite cheese.
A dash of barbecue sauce isn't bad.
My son likes a few pickled jalepeno peppers.
Use a bottled Asian dressing instead of the Thousand Island.
Go with a Ranch dressing and add some crisp bacon.