I Choose.....

I am working at changing my house keeping habits and at releasing much old 'stuff' from my home.  I am doing what I can to clean up this mess I have been living it, I want my home to be something to be proud of again like it once was.  I used to enjoy having friends over, now I live in CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) and I want to be able to have people over again.

 

I choose to change my mind, to make it one that believes in prosperity so I can easily and joyfully release the old beliefs that no longer work for me as well as the old 'stuff' in my home that I no longer use or need. 

I release the old and I welcome the new!!!

 I do this in Peace, Ease, Harmony, Love & Joy!!

Canadian Coins

Canada used to have paper bills for $1 and $2 amounts, then with plans to save money,  the powers that be decided to replace these bills with coins that last longer than bills.

First brought out was the gold colored 1 dollar coin, nicknamed the Loonie for the waterfowl emblazoned one one side of it. The other side has an image of Queen Elizabeth II, as do all Canadian coins. The Loonie was released to the public June 30, 1987.

Wow, it is so hard to believe it has already been 25 years!!

 The Canadian 2 dollar coin, commonly called Toonie, was introduced on February 19, 1996. It is a bi-metal coin with the reverse side showing an image of a Polar Bear floating on an ice flow.

Recently I found I had a Toonie that was different than any I remember seeing before.  It has not just 1 Polar Bear, but 3 of them! A mother bear and 2 cubs.

I was very excited to find this coin and I set it aside in my wallet to save it.  I have a friend who is a coin collector so knows much about rare coins, uncirculated coins, valuable coins, etc., and if he does not have the information he has connections with people who can tell him what he needs to know.  One day I was talking to George at the funeral of a mutual friend of ours, and I took the opportunity to mention my coin to him.  He said it is a common coin, though I thought it would be a rare one.  I have kept my eyes open, checking all the Toonies I get, and yet have still not seen another one with the family on it.

Sadly, I lost my coin that I had planned to keep and to even turn into a necklace to wear around my neck each day. I hope I find my coin again, or another one like it.  I guess if that is meant to be, it will be.

Affirmations

 I recently did a post titled Carfirmations.  I keep my Carfirmations CD in the CD player in my truck and every time I drive anywhere I get to listen to my dear friend Chris Madsen playing music while he shares positive affirmations and quotes, also on the CD there are songs he wrote and is singing. Of  course, they too are positive, spiritual songs.  I am so much enjoying listening to this each time I go anywhere, and it always brightens my day.

 

Trike Makeover 2012

I have been doing lots of different repairs and upgrades to my trike this summer, including Head Cover gasket, Oil change, Steering Stem bearings, back Brakes (new linkage, drums, shoes, cylinders... all but the Master Cylinder), paint job, new Mufflers and all exhaust leaks gone,  etc. etc.
 

This is what my trike looked like this time last year.

 The engine with the new Head Cover gasket as well as the Head Cover has been freshly painted.

Phil working on my new fenders and the brackets he built to hold it secure.

 

A new way of holding the tailgate safely closed while still being easy to open when needed.

The box painted black, horseshoes painted silver, new taillights on.

The front end off to put in new upper and lower Steering Stem bearings.

 On the way home from Kaslo Jazz Festival, I was about 1km for home when I was stopped by police for having noisy pipes.  He was good and let me off without paperwork when I told him I already had new pipes going on the next day.  In this photo it is in the process of having the pipes changed and exhaust leaks plugged.

 

 Here it is all painted and ready to ride. Some more changes have taken place since this photo too.

 

 I am so grateful for my friend Phil.  I truly don't know what I would do without him.  For sure I would not have my trike looking and running like it is now, and in fact, I may not even have it on the road without Phil's help.

 Stay Tuned!!

There is more to come!!

"Pretties" for my Trike

Today I added some 'pretties' to my trike.  With the help of my buddy, Fly'n Phil, over the last month or so, I made some things out of aluminum to put on the trike, just as Phil has put the ones he made on his Harley.  He is very creative and very patient when it comes to making things like this and he offered to teach me how to do these.  First, you need to draw out what you want to make, it's good to draw on poster board or some other thick paper.  You then cut it out and use it as a template, tracing around it to put the picture on your aluminum.  Now you cut it out, Phil does this with a jig saw though a scroll saw would likely be better. For some things you have to drill holes in the aluminum so you can put the jig saw blade into the holes so you can change the direction of the cut. Once it's all cut out you then file the cut edges then start sanding.  First you do a bunch of sanding with one grit of sand paper, then with a finer grit, next an even finer grit.  You continue sanding with finer and finer grits of sand paper until you have used 2500 or even 3000 grit.  Now it's time to polish your piece with a good metal polish, we use Autosol.  The end product, after a lot of work, looks much like chrome and is so shiny that you can see yourself in it.  In my case, we made 2 feathers, now on my gas tank, and 2 eagle heads which are now on either side of the cargo box at the back of the trike. 

I have been getting a lot of comments and compliments on my trike ever since I put it on the road, after all, it is a one of a kind machine.  It would appear that the addition of these 'pretties' will get even more attention and compliments.  This evening I went to Zellers to look for an air mattress for camping and when I came out to my trike there was a couple in a car beside the trike.  He started talking to me about how much he loves my trike, and he said how good the feathers, eagles heads and horse shoes look on it.  No sooner had they left and along came a mom & daughter who 'oooh'ed and 'awwww'ed over the trike and the girl asked if she could take a photo of me and my trike.  Of course I said yes.  I wish I could have talked to them a bit more, but my cel phone rang and it was an important call I had been waiting for so I had to take it.  Many people ask to take photos of Phil's Harley... now it's starting with my trike too.  Both are one of a kind and both look pretty cool!!

When We Give.. We Receive!!

When I no longer have need of things that are still useable, I like to donate them to second hand stores or give them away through Freecycle. My friend Dan thinks I'm crazy and that it's just garbage that should be thrown into the dump.  We can agree to disagree, lol.

Last fall I bought a new mattress & box spring set, so had a double mattress to give away. I advertised it on Freecycle but had not takers, so put it into the carport where it was safe from getting wet and there it sat.  I was also given a big bag of women's clothes last fall, went through and took out what I wanted, then put it into the carport with plans to take it to donate and never got around to doing that.  A couple days ago I advertised both on Freecycle and had lots of replies for both the ads I put there.  I contacted the ladies from the first email received from both posts.

Heather I have known for years and it was good to see her again after not seeing each other for quite some time. She was delighted to get the clothes! and we enjoyed a short visit while her husband sat waiting in the van.

I had never met Ann or her son & daughter before.  They came to get the mattress for the daughter's daughter, though it was Ann that had answered my post. What great people!! Very friendly and nice. I so enjoyed meeting them and they were so grateful to get this mattress.

So, by giving my old things that others would take to the dump, I not only did a good deed to Mother Earth, but these people got something they needed and we all were blessed by meeting each other and having short though wonderful visits together. When we give... we receive!!

Happy New Year

The time is tick-tick-ticking away.... slowly heading towards midnight. The year

is coming to an end along with this day.

The clock on my computer says it is 11:11pm, a special time to be sure, and it tells me just how close we are getting to that moment in time when this year will end and the new year will begin, filled with hope and promise for a better, happier, healthier, slimmer, trimmer, more love filled and joy filled year of greater prosperity. Yes, we all pin our hopes on the new year, wanting it to be better than the old one. There is a way to insure that it is better... change the way we think and we change our experiences in life.

One sure way of changing our lives and making them better, happier, richer, etc. is to practice gratitude.

Just take a moment here and there to count your blessings.


For everything, great and small, give thanks.


I have so very much to be grateful for and I take time each day to thank God for the many many things I have to be thankful for. Some are as simple as:

- I am grateful for my eyes as they allow me to see the beauty that surrounds me.
- I am grateful for my ears, for with them I get to hear music, laughter, birds singing, and all other things that I can enjoy &/or learn from.
- I am grateful for my feet and for my legs as they make it possible for me to stand and to walk, to drive my truck and my trike.
- I am grateful for my hands and my wrists and my arms. They make it possible for me to care for myself and others, to pick up my food and feed myself, to pet my animals and to take care of them all.

Having been in a crash this year, I am even more thankful now than I was before for my hands & wrists. Having had the left wrist shattered and the right one sprained I have come to really appreciate just how much we depend on the use of our hands for great and small things every day. Just for a day try not using your hands, or even think of each little thing you use your hands for and notice just how wonderful a creation they really are.... be grateful for them. Slowly I am getting the use of my left hand back, but it is still unknown if I will ever get full use of it back. I am so grateful that I can again type with it.

I also think of the 'outside' things for which I am grateful, such as though not limited to:

- I am grateful for my home. It is cold outside tonight and I am blessed to have a home to live in and a fire going in the stove to keep my home warm and comfortable for me and my animals.
- I am grateful for each and every one of my animals: Mewsic (cat); Grace Hawk (rabbit); Sheri, Daisy, Smudge & Charlie (chinchillas); DW (Indian Ringneck Parrot/Parakeet; Friday & Miracle (Pacific Parrotlets); Angel, Stud Muffin, Tiki & Billy Bob (Cockatiels). They give me a reason to get out of bed in the morning, and to come home again each time I leave.
- I am grateful for my computers... for oh so many reasons.
- I am grateful for the food I eat as it nourishes my body.
- I am grateful for the clothes I wear.

And I can go on and on and on... but I won`t just now.

I had many sad times in 2010, and I also had many happy times, many things to be grateful for. I know that I am truly blessed in many ways. I look forward to the coming year, knowing that it too is filled with many things I will be grateful for. It is filled with much excitement, joy, love, prosperity, abundance, friendship and.... more.

As the last second of 2010 and the first second of 2011 approach, I wish you all much to be grateful for. I wish you all the very best of everything in this wonderful year and beyond.

Thank you for visiting my blog. I look forward to seeing you again throughout the coming year.

Good News!!!

My pellet stove is fixed and running.

YES!!!!

The pellet stove repair men just left. The final bill was $120! More than I would like to have had to put out for it, and also way less than it could have been too. I am a "happy camper". There were some plugs and jam ups in the stove pipe and exhaust system. They cleaned out the stove pipe and still had a problem, smoke was coming inside the house something terrible. I opened windows and the front door, letting cold yet fresh clean air in and smoke out. Still have 3 windows open and they will stay so for a bit yet. I don't want my animals hurt by breathing in smoke, and though it may not bother the rabbit or chinchillas (or might) or the cat, definately not the dog as she's outside, it very likely could hurt the parrot and budgie bird. I totally love DW, my wonderful parrot, and won't take a chance her health. Loosing one pet this week is one pet too many, so not into taking chances.

Anyway, they (Harley & Cal) not only got it all unblocked, but also checked other parts. Harley (absolutely drop dead gorgeous) said the blower motor is getting old and week. He turned it up to high and it's working fine for now, likely will make it through this winter, though should be replaced before next fall or it will break down on me in winter again. So, I'll be saving money again. Sheeeesh!!! Oh well, at least it will be an opportunity to rest my eyes on that 'Eye Candy' again. Okay, a lot of women probably would pass him by, but I think he's gorgeous. He has longish gray hair, tied back, facial hair, and the most beautiful, incredible blue eyes that are so full of life, not to mention that deadly smile. Sigh.

But I digress.... oh ya... digress. Time to get back on track. When Harley called to say they were coming over I asked if they were coming right away, he said they were and I said that was good as I had to go out a little later. First thing he said when he got here was "I don't know where you're planning on going, but I wouldn't if I was you", or words to that effect. He and Cal both told me how bad the roads are today with this snow falling, it is apparently a very slippery snow, and their van is 4 wheel drive with all the weight of their many tools and such in it... and he couldn't make it up my driveway. My plans were to go to Enderby to visit Mom, then after dinner return by way of Armstrong to go to Toastmasters, then home. I decided that if the roads are that bad and my truck is 4 wheel drive but hasn't much/any weight in it, I would take their advice and stay home. After a bit I would phone Pat and tell her I wouldn't be able to make it to Toastmasters tonight, then Mom and cancel today. Before I had the chance, Pat called me and said Toastmasters is being cancelled tonight because of the bad roads. It has been snowing all day and sounds like it plans to continue for some time yet. Next week we will do this week's schedule, just have everything a week behind, so that's okay.

Now, I am going to call Mom. I know she will be sad I can't go, and she will be happy to know I'm not going to be out on those roads today. Yesterday the forecast for today was rain, not snow, and a high of +9°C... ya, another wrong forecast. Both short and long term forecasts have been totally changed since last night. So... what are they worth anyway? I mostly just read and post them for the laugh, just to show how badly they screw up each day, yet still keep their jobs.
I wanna be a weather woman!!

BE WELL! (tm)

I read this and found it very interesting. I've heard this kind of stuff before, too. I thought you might be interested in reading it too. What a great way to start off the new year!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

YIPPEE! A BRAND NEW YEAR!


Here's the good news: You have a brand-new body!

Your oldest bone cells are three months old. Your oldest liver
cells are six months old. The lining of your stomach and
intestines is at most seven days old. The oldest cell of your
skin is only a month old. Your oldest blood cells are only four
months old. Ninety-eight percent of your whole body is less than
a year old!

And the other two percent, composed of cells that medical
science tells us are with us for life -- some of our brain and
gonad cells -- are in continuous exchange on the atomic and
molecular level with the environment. This means that they, too,
are constantly being transformed to something new.

That means that right this second, new cells are being born, and
you are in the midst of physical transformation.

You also have access to new thoughts, new possibilities,
EVERYTHING and ANYTHING you can dream up! No limits!

If there's anything you didn't like about 2008, or anything you
liked but aren't sure will last or can be replaced with
something even better... this is VERY good news!

Nothing about the past, even five minutes ago, needs to persist
or influence your future -- unless you choose it.

So...what's ahead for you?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Copy/Pasted from The Science of Being Well Network Newsletter
by Dr. Alexandra Gayek
http://www.scienceofbeingwell.net

Another Tuesday

Today, among other things, I wrote a letter & faxed it, read emails as usual, other everyday stuff. Then Dan came over and while he was here I said that I need to raise my arm chair about 4" to make it easier for me to get out of. He went outside to my wood pile and made me one, just like that, haha. He didn't even have any of his saws with him, so had to do the work with one of my hand saws. He used 2x4s to make a frame, then attached a piece of plywood. Exactly what I had in mind. It really helps a lot!! I now have a lot less pain in back and knees when getting into and especially out of my chair. Now if only he could do that with the toilet, lol. It can be very painful to get onto and off of the toilet, something one would never think of until they have back problems.

I went this evening to Toastmasters in that town a little north of here. It was a very nice evening and I had a good time. I officially applied for membership in this club, so that will be voted on next week. Toastmasters International says every member must be voted in by the club. So, next week I'll see if I get in or not. I see no reason why not, but.... Both times I've visited this club, there has been snacks for during the break, and I love food!! The way I've been 'porking out' lately, maybe I should just join the bacon of the month club.

When I was getting ready to go out to Toastmasters, the phone rang, but I was just out of the shower and in a hurry, so I didn't bother to run and answer it. No message was left on the machine. Then the cell phone started to ring. Must be someone fairly close to me to call the home phone then the cell, so I ran for that one. It could be important, especially now with Mom not feeling well. It was Mike, my friend who lives 'down valley', the one I go to the Omak Stampede with every August. He drives truck and his boss just bought a new/newer truck down in Florida. These are not pickup trucks, but 'big' trucks. I don't know the exact details on this truck, but I do know that 'Boss' wants Mike to go to Florida and drive it home. Mike is going to ask him if he can take someone along to keep him company, cuz he's "too old to make that trip alone". Oh, he knows he 'can' take someone along, but he's going to see if that 'someone' will have expenses paid like he will, haha. If he can get his boss to pay MY way, and if I can get someone to stay at my home and look after my critters for a couple weeks, I'm off!! Mind you, it comes at not a great time, but I've never travelled much or far, so this would be an awesome oportunity.

1- Mom has not been well lately, she's 85 and needs help and company. My sister M lives in the same town as Mom, so has been spending more time with her lately, and cooking for her, but M & R are going "out of country" from Nov. 14 - 25, then will be gone to her daughters place in Calgary Dec. 3 - 11. Sister A is going "out of country" Nov. 18 - 28. Brother B was just out here to visit, but lives north of Edmonton, Alberta. Brother T lives "at the coast" so is also several hours away from here. M set up with some co-workers that Mom will call them if she needs anything and they will check on her sometimes. One was given my home and cell numbers in case I am needed. Also, I will go up to visit her on Tuesdays before I go to Toastmasters, if not more than that. So... this makes me pretty much the only one available to Mom for this next while.
2- At this time of the year it's harder to go away due to the colder weather. In warmer weather I can leave the animals for a few days and they are okay, but this time of the year I can't just leave Reba outside in case her water freezes and she has nothing to drink. Also, in warmer weather I don't need to worry about heat in the house, now I run a pellet stove that needs to be fed every day. The parrot and rat both need to be fed every day, the rat 2x a day in fact, so they need to 'go out' or have someone 'come in' to care for them.
3- November 28 is Pasta Productions!! I have been planning and co-ordinating this and will be preforming in it as well as being the MC for the evening. I am the Production Manager for Pasta Productions. What is Pasta Productions? A delicious Pasta Dinner, followed by an evening of Talent. From a 5 year old on piano to a professional singer/song writer, a former pro juggler will do a juggling show for us, a flute preformance, etc etc etc. It will be a great evening.
4- Judge Thomas Troward class. I will have to get someone to record the class or two I will miss, but no problem I'm sure. I'll leave my recorder and tapes and even Rev. Dale will record for me, I'm sure.

Soooo, I sure hope the trip to Florida will happen... and not until after November 28, and with someone I can trust to be here and 'critter sit' for me. Lots to think about. If 'Boss' says he won't pay my way I will either have to stay home or figure a way to pay for my part of it myself. That would be a trip to Oliver (gas in my truck), then I'd travel to the US with Mike and 'Boss' and fly down from Washington state to Florida (I'd have to pay that flight). I'd have to pay my own food most of the time, though if Mike has to have a hotel room and I share it with him my expense wouldn't be too big for that. He said something about coming back across southern US, then up the Pacific Coast, stop at Disney in California... hey, maybe in Florida too and compare the two, haha.

Well, enough dreaming for now. I must get busy. I have a lot to do yet.

October 16 - Thursday

The weather today was grey, dark, rainy, and yet I still managed to have a great day.

- lately, every day, I get a text message from my cousin Delaine, sending me love and wishes for a good day. How cool is that? Maybe I'll do another post to tell you about my cousins, D & D.

- I spent a good part of the day 'playing' at an online jewelery auction. I've been watching it for a few days now, and today I actually broke down and did some bidding, and yes, some buying. I think I got some really great deals on 4 pairs of earrings, and I look forward to receiving them and actually seeing them in real life. Good thing I'd been saving moneys I've earned online so have some built up in PayPal to be able to make this "investment".

- Later this afternoon, Mewsic (cat) and I took a short nap together, very nice, haha.

- This evening I went to another Toastmasters meeting, the same club as last Thursday, only this was a campfire meeting. Apparently they have these twice a year. It was really nice to sit around a fire on the banks of one of our local lakes, and have our meeting. Instead of the normal table topics, we each took turns telling a ghost story. After hot chocolate and eats, we listened to 2 speeches, both very well presented, then discussed some club stuff. It was a great evening.

- I'm wondering if some of those PS3 games would be about swatting flies. My house is thick with them and I'm wanting them gone.

I've Got a JOB!! or a Mission that pays?

I'm really happy and excited to announce that I have just gotten a job/career/mission with a pay cheque. Haha. I have not had a paying job in many years because of the problems I have with my back and depression, but this one should work out. The owner of the company, Ray, goes to my Spiritual Centre and he knows I've got back problems and depression issues, and he's okay with that. On days I am in too much pain to get out and go on appointments, I can do phone work and emails... at home so I can do it laying down if need be, or work a bit and rest, work a bit and rest.

What I will be doing is helping to reduce the use of paper in advertising, while helping store & restuarant owners reduce the cost of their advertising and making it easier for the consumer to find information on products and sales. Want to know what a certain restaurant has on their menu, or for that days special? Traveling and want to find a good restaurant that serves steaks? or Chinese food? Go to your computer, or your cell phone that connects to the internet, and bring up dininginbc.com. Wa Laa... You click on the name of the town, look at the list of restaurants and choose which ones to take a closer look at. Simple as that. For other products, greenflyers.com.

I believe I will enjoy this work, be doing something good for the health of the planet, and help small business owners to save some money... all while enjoying myself. How's that for great?

I am grateful for this bundle of opportunities.

Gotta Love It!

Thought I'd share with you one of the Birthday gifts I got. Dan gave me a HP printer-scanner-copier All In One. How's that for cool. I really needed a scanner and a printer, so this will come in very handy. I've scanned a couple pictures and now am working on scanning a cook book I borrowed from Mom and she wants back asap. As soon as I find some of the "old" pictures of me that I know I have around here somewhere, I will scan them and show you "me over the years".

Goodbye 2006

Last night I went to be "early", well, for me anyway... somewhere just after 10 pm, with my alarm set for 3 am. I wasn't sure I'd sleep that long as I don't usually sleep well if I go to bed early, but had to give it a try. I did do some waking up, but that is normal, and was surprised that I did actually sleep for most of that 5 hours.

The reason I got up in the middle of the night was to go to the World Healing Meditation at my Spiritual Centre. I am so glad I did go as it is a very wonderful experience to join with others in the same room as you join with others around the world, all praying and meditating for World Peace at the exact same time.

After the meditation, we all went out together for breakfast at the local Denny's Restaurant. After that, when others went home, I went back to the Centre and did some computer work, did up the Sunday Programs which I usually have done early in the week rather than the last minute, and generally got things ready for the regular Sunday events. 10:30 am meditation, then at 11 am the service. Today, as I often do, I presided over the service as well as was the Song Leader. It was a good morning, though I was very tired. I left there about 1 pm, after the social time (visiting, drinking tea, eating snacks), and came home. After doing a few things with the animals and a short time on the computer, at 2 pm I went to bed for a nice afternoon nap. :o)

This evening I spent sitting in front of the TV, relaxing with my "family". When I first brought Reba (rottweiler) home as a puppy, Shadow (cat) was afraid and he ran from her, so she chased him thinking it was a fun game like she used to play with her siblings. Shadow didn't think the game so fun, lol. So now that 7 week old puppy is an 8 year old, large dog who still acts like a puppy, so full of energy and wanting to play. Many times over those almost 8 years since I brought her home, I've wished that I could spend an evening with Shadow on the couch with me and Reba on the floor by my feet. The closest I've come to that was a few times when Shadow was on my lap while I was at the computer, and Reba came in to the room. Shadow wanted to run but didn't dare get off me... so for a time I got to hold & pet him while petting Reba who took the occasional lick at the cat. Many times Shadow has sat on the couch with me until I go to let Reba in, then hearing the door open to her pen, off he runs for safety. That is until this evening. This evening, Shadow stayed on the couch while I let Reba in and fed her dinner, got myself some tea, and came back to the couch. I actually got to spend an evening with Shadow on the couch beside me and on me by turns, and Reba on the floor very close by. Reba would come for some loving from me and to check out Shadow and give him a wee kiss (lick) from time to time and he took it quite well. At one point I even got up for another cup of tea and they waited for me to come back and continue our evening. What an awesome gift they gave me.

I am a goal setter, which I will soon talk more about, and have a long list of goals I write down. Some I work on and some I just let work themselves out. (Let God work on them for me). Following is 2006's goal # 108, and a follow-up note:

Reba and Shadow both with me at the same time, accepting each other

VICTORY!! Tonight, 01 Mar 06, Shadow on my lap at computer, Reba came in. Shadow stayed and even curled up seeming very comfortable after initial discomfort. He stretched his head to Reba in a loving way, she licked him a wee bit, sniffed at him a bunch, got excited and tried to get him to run but I stopped her. This went on for about 15 minutes until Reba went for a drink, then Shadow headed for the bedroom and safety. Good start!! This happened again in May.

And tonight was even better!!!!! What an awesome way to say goodbye to 2006.

I also went out after that, and fed/watered the chickens as I always do. Coming back in I realized just how happy and satisfying it is to do this. While others are out partying together to bring in the new year, being drunk and stupid, I am home "alone"... and yet I'm not alone. God is with me as always, and I have all my critters too. It feels very satisfying and fulfilling to be a "farmer" taking care of my "live stock" on a cold winter's night.

I am blessed!! I am prospered!!

Dinner Is Served

Here's Reba's dinner:

Blue Rare Sirloin Steak, with a side of Crumbles and a large water.

Hey... that's not Reba!! I just turn my back for a moment and someone's porking down the beef, lol. This is Shadow, enjoying his "sister's" steak dinner.

As soon as Shadow had a wee snack and left, I opened the door... in came Reba and in 1.5 seconds that Bowl o' Beef was history!

I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it feels to be able to eat this kind of food, and to feed it to my animals. It is just beyond words. I am so grateful!

Christmas Came Early

Christmas has already started for me.

When Dan was by today, not only did I give him his gift, but he also gave me one. I wouldn't have opened it until Christmas day, but he wanted me to. He gave me a $25 gift certificate gas card so I can go out and have fun over the holidays without worrying about gas in my truck. He also gave me $4o cash to use for gas or whatever else I would want to spend it on. In a card he wrote "Have a gas this Christmas", LOL.

"Where's the beef?"
In my freezer!

My other early Christmas present is Beef. Free range beef. The other day on Freecycle there was an offer giving away what she called half a deep freeze of beef for your dog. I have a rottweiler so figure any extra food for her is a bonus. I wrote and asked for it, as I'm sure many people did, and I got it. Also, the lady lives about 45 minutes out of town, but goes right past my place on her way in, so she was nice enough to drop it off here when she next went in to town.

She told me that a fellow had owed them money, so gave them all this free range beef to pay his bill. They cooked a roast but didn't care for the taste of the gravy from it. She said the meat was probably just fine for human consumption, but because they didn't like the taste she doesn't know if anyone else would either, so figured it would be good for dogs/cats.

This is one T-bone steak! So big it almost didn't fit in my frying pan! I decided to cook one and see how it tasted, though must admit I was almost scared to taste it in case it tasted gross. It smelled just fine before and during the cooking, so I gave it a try. It did taste a bit strange, but not bad. I figure it's likely due to what the animal was eating... wild plants on a range rather than hay and grain in a feed lot. As usual, I added a bit of steak sauce to it and it made a marvelous dinner for me last night. Reba (my dear dog) really enjoyed all the scraps and the bone. I still have a huge chunk of it in the fridge for supper tonight.

I totally emptied out my little freezer of everything except the chickens and pigeons I butchered earlier this fall. Well, I ate one chicken already, but the rest are still in the freezer. Then I filled it as full as I possibly could. Then I made as much room in the fridge freezer and stuffed it full too. And there is still more. It's out in the back of my truck, lots of roasts. Hopefully the weather will keep it frozen until Monday so I can take it to my Mom's and put it in her freezer for now. Or maybe I'll "re-gift" it to a few people. That would be fun.

As I brought it into the house, I weighed it all. First I stepped on the scale and got my weight with boots, jacket, etc... then out I went for the first bag. Coming in I stepped on the scale and got the weight, subtracted my weight and got the weight of the bag o' beef. I did this with all of them, then added it up.

93 Kg of Beef!!
That is 205 pounds of beef!!

To me that is amazing... almost like a ton of gold. Food for me and Reba, and even some for my cat Shadow. We will have a wonderful winter... and then some! If I get a chance to go to a Pot Luck I'll volunteer to bring a roast, haha. There are roasts, steaks, ribs, stir fry, loads of ground beef.

PROSPERITY!!!!

I am so grateful for this wonderful gift.

I AM PROSPEROUS!!

I AM prosperous!!!

I AM a world traveler!!

Each day I travel around the world. I pop in to visit Claire in Scotland (I always wanted to go to Scotland), and I visit Kiminanda in Denmark... off to various places in the United States (Lisa and Wildside, both in the Pacific Northwest... Katie in Montana - as a "western horsewoman" I've always wanted to go to Montana). And of course, also daily visits to Madcap Mom and her family in Alberta, Canada.

When I have time, I also take "side trips" to visit other people I "meet" when visiting the above mentioned friends.

All this and never leave my chair!! Gotta love computers and the Internet. And at times some of these people drop in to visit me too.

This is definite prosperity in my books.

Blessings to all!
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