Thank You

Memorial Day 2012

Sunday's Psalm--Pentecost Sunday

Lord, send out your Spirit, 

and renew the face of the earth.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
the earth is full of your creatures;

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may the LORD be glad in his works!
Pleasing to him be my theme;
I will be glad in the LORD.

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

If you take away their breath, they perish
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.

Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

Skywatch--historical contrast of technology

I just had to get back into the habit of Skywatch. I took this last month on our outing to Palouse Falls and the one below a couple of years ago south of Goldendale.

SkyWatch Friday

Headbangers--my theme: food

Well, I will be busy from early tomorrow morning chopping, baking, browning, simmering, as it is the day that I treat all my volunteers to a spaghetti feed to thank them for their hard work all year. Since it was my turn for a headbangers theme, "FOOD" seemed to be just the ticket for the day.

Since pictures of me cooking spaghetti will not be available when the header is due, I pored over my files to find some great meals and found a few of interest. This was us being treated to a feast by our son's Turkish friends in Siberia.

I think I will present this bowl of cioppino as the header photo. It is not only a great picture and a delicious meal, but also healthy.

...unlike this one. But notice that we did share it among five of us.

This was the first one I chose. You have to start them out right. Sasha did a good job of preparing the corn on the cob for the coals.

I will take my camera along tomorrow and have my friend get a picture of the spaghetti chef.

If you would like to join us in our weekly header challenge, just give a holler at one of us, and check out what the others have done with the Food theme by clicking their links in my sidebar.

Summer is on the way

Sunday's Psalm--Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 

a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

All you peoples, clap your hands,
shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy:
 a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy;

the LORD, amid trumpet blasts.

Sing praise to God, sing praise;

sing praise to our king, sing praise.

choir practice

 God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 
a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

For king of all the earth is God;

sing hymns of praise.

God reigns over the nations,

God sits upon his holy throne.

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: 

a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

A Skywatch Puzzle

While we were exploring the cindercone at Newberry Volcanic National Monument, I was only a bit interested in this vapor trail as a plane approached from the north. Lovely view, but the vapor trail was not all that unusual. In fact, I didn't even compose the picture to feature it--just a "Here it comes".

When I turned toward the south after a moment and saw the "There it goes." I found that puzzle I mentioned. I do not have an explanation for the dark line that is ahead of the trail. Do you?

It could have been an Odd Shot. But I cut back a while back on participating in some of the memes, and suspended the Odd Shots on Monday again. Things are settling down into a routine again, and I may be back with Skywatch and/or Weekend Reflections more regularly.

But does anyone have an answer to my Skywatch puzzle?

Headbangers Challenge--Trees

I chose this tree to edit to fit my header in response to the headbanger theme presented by Tom. There are only four of us Headbangers at the present time. We would love for you to join us as our optimum number is six. We post a new header according to a theme each week, and vote as to our favorite interpretation of the theme.
The question given us with the tree(s) theme was What kind is it and why did you choose it?

My answer to the first question is, I don't know. And I can't run out and check it out because this tree is in Yorkshire, in the Northumberland National Park, along the route of Hadrian's Wall.

And I'm not.


We visited the UK two years ago this summer, starting with a couple of days in Edinburgh, then a week hiking in the Scottish Highlands. When we left Scotland and headed south into England, we hiked along a portion of Hadrian's Wall.

The wall was ordered built by Roman Emperor Hadrian  in  AD 122  to mark the northern extreme of the Empire. It was a defense against those crazies from Scotland (my husbands ancestors?)




Ruins of the wall and some of the fortifications along it stretch from west to east from Carlisle to near Newbury on Tyne. You can visit by bus, or hike the entire thing--almost 90 miles (from memory, and coincidentally about the same distance as the Wonderland Trail which circles Mt. Rainier. Research shows the wall is slightly shorter.) We took the bus to one stop and hiked to Housesteads--one of the forts--to get the bus back to our train.

The wall goes through Yorkshire farmland, life being lived, in the midst of history.

As we traveled along the wall we came upon this tree:

No one said the hike was level.

This tree, I think maybe it is an oak, stands next to one of the wells from the original settlements of the area. 

I almost went back. Heights (as much hiking as I do in the mountains--you may find it hard to believe) give me pause. I am glad that Himself was not the photographer or you would likely be treated to the method of my descent instead of his.

So why did I choose this tree for my header despite all the lovely trees in our arboretum and those in our Northwest forests, or the forests we visited in Alaska or Siberia? I guess the answer to that one is also "I don't know."

It is historical. It is a reminder of a fun time before the current medical stresses.

And I just love the way this picture came out.

ABC R is for...

Road Trip

 We went on a road trip this weekend to Central Oregon to scout out campsites for when we have our Cousin Camp next month. We are still working out specifically where to go, as we should have made reservations much earlier.

Although Washington's Cascades have a few higher mountains, Oregon's Cascades have more peaks that rise to make a great snowcapped view from east or west. Here are some of the sights along the road.

Mt. Bachelor is a premium ski destination in the winter.

The ones on the right partly hidden by the trees are the Three Sisters.

I think that that is Mt. McLaughlin behind Black Butte.

 ABC Wednesday

Sunday's Psalm--Sixth Sunday of Easter

The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.

All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.