Witch and ghost make merry on this last of dear October’s days...

I LOVE Halloween

When witches go riding,
and black cats are seen,
the moon laughs and whispers,
‘tis near Halloween


Halloween had its beginnings in an ancient, pre-Christian Celtic festival of the dead. The Celtic peoples, who were once found all over Europe, divided the year by four major holidays. According to their calendar, the year began on a day corresponding to November 1st on our present calendar. The date marked the beginning of winter. Since they were pastoral people, it was a time when cattle and sheep had to be moved to closer pastures and all livestock had to be secured for the winter months. Crops were harvested and stored. The date marked both an ending and a beginning in an eternal
cycle.

The festival observed at this time was called Samhain (pronounced Sah-ween). It was the biggest and most significant holiday of the Celtic year. The Celts believed that at the time of Samhain, more so than any other time of the year, the ghosts of the dead were able to mingle with the living, because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year traveled into the otherworld. People gathered to sacrifice animals, fruits, and vegetables. They also lit bonfires in honor of the dead, to aid them on their journey, and to keep them away from the living. On that day all manner of beings were abroad: ghosts, fairies, and demons--all part of the dark and dread.
Samhain became the Halloween we are familiar with when Christian missionaries attempted to change the religious practices of the Celtic people.



Samhain, with its emphasis on the supernatural, was decidedly pagan. While missionaries identified their holy days with those observed by the Celts, they branded the earlier religion's supernatural deities as evil, and associated them with the devil. As representatives of the rival religion, Druids were considered evil worshippers of devilish or demonic gods and spirits. The Celtic underworld inevitably became identified with the Christian Hell.

The Christian feast of All Saints was assigned to November 1st. The day honored every Christian saint, especially those that did not otherwise have a special day devoted to them. This feast day was meant to substitute for Samhain, to draw the devotion of the Celtic peoples, and, finally, to replace it forever. That did not happen, but the traditional Celtic deities diminished in status, becoming fairies or leprechauns of more recent traditions.

The old beliefs associated with Samhain never died out entirely. The powerful symbolism of the traveling dead was too strong, and perhaps too basic to the human psyche, to be satisfied with the new, more abstract Catholic feast honoring saints.

In old England cakes were made for the wandering souls, and people went "a' soulin'" for these "soul cakes." Halloween, a time of magic, also became a day of divination, with a host of magical beliefs: for instance, if persons hold a mirror on Halloween and walk backwards down the stairs to the basement, the face that appears in the mirror will be their next lover.
Virtually all present Halloween traditions can be traced to the ancient Celtic day of the dead. Halloween is a holiday of many mysterious customs, but each one has a history, or at least a story behind it. The wearing of costumes, for instance, and roaming from door to door demanding treats can be traced to the Celtic period and the first few centuries of the Christian era, when it was thought that the souls of the dead were out and around, along with fairies, witches, and demons. Offerings of food and drink were left out to placate them. As the centuries wore on, people began dressing like these dreadful creatures, performing antics in exchange for food and drink. This practice is called mumming, from which the practice of trick-or-treating evolved.

May Jack-o-lanterns burning bright
Of soft and golden hue
Pierce through the future’s veil and show
What fate now holds for you.

From ghoulies and ghosties
And long-leggedy beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us!

Our Country Life

You may have heard me say before that my only real ambition in life was to be a mother and wife.  It is still true today, however, the gig doesn't pay well so I am back to another year of teaching.  I do, at least, teach a subject I love.  Environmental science ties in nicely with my desire to live sustainably and be the best human being I can be.   A new change in the way we are doing things this year is homeschooling.  Our 13 year old twin boys are taking a year off to reinforce traditional life skills and fine tune their academics.  They are going back to basics, incorporating Bible study, and enjoying some time with their grandparents.  We have taught them to can food, clean and sharpen lawnmower blades and tools, chop and stack wood, drive a truck, grow a garden and tend animals, and they are in the process of engineering solar panels.  We did all of that this summer! They already could cook, but through 4-H they are becoming "Grill Sergeants" and will someday make their wives very happy with their newly acquired skills. My children's youth is slipping away and I am at work while it slides through my fingers.  Regardless, I am trying to enjoy as much of it as I possibly can. I love the country life and I took some pics to document ours. 

This morning's breakfast was chocolate waffles with fresh cherries, and western omelets. 90% of this meal was grown and produced by our family!

Want to be more sustainable too?  Here is a tutorial on canning salsa.  It is a good place to start! We have been canning corn, peaches, and tomatoes for several days but we are switching to salsa in the following photos.

SALSA Ingredients

• Tomatoes - about 15 lbs (yes, quite a few - you remove the skins, seeds ( I leave the seeds in because they don't bother us) and a lot of the water, so it takes a lot to start.) You'll need about 3 quarts of prepared chopped tomatoes. This makes about 8 pints of salsa! If you only want to make a single jar, see this page instead!
• Salsa mix or your own seasonings. The Ball salsa mix sells for about $2.00 to $4.00 per packet. A packet will make about a 7 pint jars. See step 7 below for seasonings.
• 2 cups Lemon juice (if you make your own seasoning) or  white vinegar (if you use the Ball or Mrs. Wages mixes)  Ball is better IMO.
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 10 Jalapeno peppers chopped (or as many as you like)
• 5 onions chopped (or as many as you like)

Equipment 

• 1 Water bath Canner (a huge pot to sanitize the jars after filling (about $30 to $35 - $30 at  local "big box" stores.  Canners, supplies and kits    can be purchased by clicking here if you prefer. Tomatoes are on the border between the high-acid fruits that can be preserved in a boiling-water bath and the low-acid fruits, vegetables and meats that need pressure canning.
• Pint (or smaller) canning jars (Ball or Kerr jars can be found at Publix, Kroger, or local "big box" stores - about $8 per dozen jars including the lids and rings).
• Lids - thin, flat, round metal lids with a gum binder that seals them against the top of the jar. They may only be used once.
• Rings - metal bands that secure the lids to the jars. They may be reused many times.
• Jar grabber (to pick up the hot jars) 
• Lid lifter (has a magnet to pick the lids out of the boiling water where you sanitize them. ($2 at mall kitchen stores and local "big box" stores.  I love this do hickey - it is a magnet with a handle.
• 1 large pot.
• Large spoons and ladles
• Jar funnel ($3-Grocery stores, like Publix, Kroger and Safeway and local "big box" stores; sometimes even hardware stores)

Step 1 - Selecting the tomatoes and chopping the veggies

It's fun to grow and pick your own and you can obviously get better quality tomatoes.  The ones above are the "uglies" from our garden.  We slice the prettiest fresh and can the ones  on which the bugs and birds munch. All the veggies below are from our garden - they are so much better than anything you can get from the grocery store. If you don't garden visit the farmers market.  Chop the peppers, onions, cilantro. etc... and set those aside.

Step 2:  Slipping the Skins

Here's a trick you may not know: put the tomatoes, a few at a time in a large pot of boiling water for no more than 1 minute (30 - 45 seconds is usually enough) then plunge them into a waiting bowl of cold water. This makes the skins slide right off of the tomatoes! If you leave the skins in, they become tough and chewy.

Step 3: Remove seeds and Chop Tomatoes

After you have peeled the skins off the tomatoes, cut the tomatoes in half and chop into the size chunks you like best.  Remove the seeds and excess water at this point if you like ( I leave the seeds in because we like them and they add fiber). Combine the spice pack, tomatoes, vinegar, and all veggies in a large pot and mix (no need to cook at this point).

You may add whatever you like at this point, here are some ideas:

3 cups chopped onions

6 jalapeño peppers, seeded, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 cups lemon or lime juice (if you are using a mix, be sure to follow their recipe; the packet mixes often use vinegar instead of lemon juice)

1 tablespoon salt (optional)

1tablespoon sugar (optional - you use Stevia, my preference (or if you prefer, Splenda) if you are on a sugar-restricted diet, or simply omit the sugar)

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin (optional)

2 tablespoons oregano leaves or chopped cilantro

If you like the sauce hotter, add 1 teaspoon of chili powder.

Step 4: Sanatize and Heat Jars

The dishwasher is fine for sanatizing the jars; especially if it has a "sanitize" cycle. I get that going while I'm preparing everything else, so it's done by the time I'm ready to fill the jars.
Be sure to let it go through the rinse cycle to get rid of any soap! Lids: Put the lids into a pan of boiling water for at least several minutes.  Note: everything gets sanitized in the water bath to prevent spoilage

                                                                        

Step 5: Filling the Jars

Fill pint to within ¼-inch of the top, clean the rim with a moist towel and seat the lid and hand-tighten the ring around them.  Be sure the contact surfaces (top of the jar and underside of the ring) are clean to get a good seal!

Step 6: Boil The Jars in a Hot Water Bath

Put them in the canner and keep them covered with at least 1 to 2 inches of water. Keep the water boiling. Process the jars in a boiling-water bath for 20 min. minimum.  This is necessary to kill germs.

 

Step 7 : Cool Down

Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool without touching or bumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight). You can then remove the rings if you like, but if you leave them on, at least loosen them quite a bit, so they don't rust in place due to trapped moisture. Once the jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with your finger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is not sealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can still use it. Some people replace the lid and reprocess the jar. If you heat the contents back up, re-jar them (with a new lid) and the full time in the canner, it's usually ok.

Enjoy your salsa all through the winter!  It makes great gifts too!

This is part of the flock - We have 120 or so and way too many roosters, but the roosters are so pretty we can't stand to get rid of them!

Ok, so my goal for today is to get the junk out for a yard sale tomorrow but instead I'm blogging and taking a photo of a really cool manicure I did myself.  These are so cool and you can do them in 10 minutes with no drying time.  http://sallyhansen.com/products/nails/nail-color/salon-effects-real-nail-polish-strips  This design is called love letter and it is 3 days old and still looks great.  Also, if your nails are short (like mine) you can get 2 manicures and 1 pedicure out of a $10 pack.  No bad. huh?  My goal for this blog is to make it like an Online journal for notable moments.  I need to start posting photos of my culinary adventures such as the chocolate beet cake we made this week and the raddish chips we experimented with.  Maybe that will be a good outlet for me.  Oh wait, school starts in a week.  Nothing creative will enter my mind for the next 10 months... 

My Master's Is A Pain, But I Am Thankful

As many of you may know, I decided that I wanted to make more money last year. The only way a teacher can do that is to earn advanced degrees. So, "why not go back to school" I said to myself. You only sponsor 2 clubs, have 2 middle school children, teach 3 preps, have soccer practice, Lego League, and church obligations... Needless to say I'm overstretched and honestly could care less about my paper over school law. I will have this blasted degree in May 2013 if I am lucky. There will be no breaks and no vacations... just one class after another. I am literally cooking a turkey and writing a paper over in loco parentis. This too shall pass and hopefully the federal government will hold up their end of the bargain and pay for it as promised.

I am having a really hard time enjoying each day of my life. I do not want to be a person who wishes her life away, but so much of life is not fun anymore. I long for simplicity. I am thankful for my family and friends and the many blessings I have and don't deserve. I am praying for a satisfied heart that is not always struggling. I pray that my Thanksgiving helps me to realize my blessings. I pray that for yours too.

Enjoy this song this Thanksgiving http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NSQLMPUK-8

October Skies Give Me Hope

"I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself." ~ D.H. Lawrence

Well, soccer should have been a fun and healthy outlet for my kids but due to bad coaching and bullying it has been an overall horrid experience. My kids complained from about the 3rd practice on but I ignored it because I felt it was important for them to learn to stand up for themselves. I eventually told the coach about the problems and he did nothing. I really think he was trying to drive out all the kids that were not from Sewanee for some sick elitist gratification.
So, we've quit even though I rarely ever quit anything I start. I am sad to see the world evolving into a hard and Godless place. The boys said only 2 others besides themselves actually went to church and treated them with respect. The majority of these kids certainly acted as thought their god is the world. Threats and tearing down one another pretty much characterized games and practice (imagine Lord of the Flies)! I have taught my children not to do those things because they are not things Jesus would do. Times like these cause me to question what I have taught them and even be angry that I have not raised them to be aggressive.
However, upon reflection of what our true purpose is on this broken planet, I have resigned not to feel sorry for myself or my children because we have a higher calling. Our boys will have nothing to explain on Judgment day concerning their behavior on the Sewanee U14 soccer team. God can look at that record and say, “Well done my good and faithful servants."
I hope they turn out to be the Christian men I have raised them to be. I hope that they are better able to bear the brokenness of this world than I. I see every injustice and have a hard time letting go.
The October skies give me hope in the promise that our Creator loves us so much he put little reminders everywhere that He is ever present, ever watchful, ever loving, and ever faithful in His promises to us.

In Psalm 37
David counsels, Trust in the Lord and do good—Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him—Cease from anger and forsake wrath—The meek will inherit the earth—The Lord loves justice and does not forsake his Saints.

A Psalm of David.


1 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.

2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

4 Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the bearth.

10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

13 The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.

14 The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation.

15 Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.

16 A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked.

17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the Lord upholdeth the righteous.

18 The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be forever.

19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.

21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.

22 For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.

24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

26 He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.

27 Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.

28 For the Lord loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.

29 The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.

31 The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.

32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.

33 The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.

34 Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

35 I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree.

36 Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
....

Promises so that we do not concern ourselves with thoughts of vengeance and retaliation. God's got it under control! Play on.....
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Please join my husband's blog: http://christopherlbenton.blogspot.com/2011/10/video-portfolio.html

Days To Remember

So Chris is an avid football fan and really wanted to go see the Vols in Knoxville a few weeks ago (in August). So I got tickets from a friend and we embarked on our journey. It got up to 100 that day then a thunderstorm hit and we were drenched and evacuated into the interior of the stadium. After an hour or so, we returned to our seats where the temperature was now about 60. I froze but we enjoyed the blowout game with the Vols beating Montana big time. Supper at IHOP - I love IHOP - and a nice warm king sized bed at the Sleep Inn. These are days to remember....

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