Summer Cooking and Some Thoughts on Helping

It was HOT today. A perfect day to make a fire, after all what's a little more heat? I've actually been setting the thermostat up in the house because the AC won't stop running. I have it up to 80 and it's cool in here. It's either stuck or boiling outside. So it's not a good day to turn on the oven or use the stove. It's a good day to barbecue.

This is a new gadget for us. You put the coals in here and some paper or kindling in the bottom and set it in the barbecue. You can make a fire and light your coals without lighter fluid. When they are burning you just let them drop into the barbecue. We use a little Smokey Joe. I don't need anything big and fancy.

My family has been poo pooing the squash. I say they aren't hungry enough. Who can resist this? I glazed them with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, fresh herbs, garlic salt and cracked pepper.


They smell wonderful.


While I'm cooking I glance over at my experiment in drying herbs. It is looking like sun wilted herbs. I don't know what I am doing. This was cilantro a few days ago. I made pesto out of the basil and placed it in ice trays in the freezer. The harvest yielded 3 trays of pesto which is actually a lot of pesto. It will be plenty for the entire year. I don't know if I am going to have dried cilantro or compost at the moment.


I also grilled hamburgers, we used these Kaiser rolls for buns and the lettuce is from the garden.

It was delicious.

I read a new blog today. I have a lot of time on my hands with these cracked ankles. The boots are so HOT that I would rather just sit on my bed and not put weight on my feet. The shots to strengthen my bones are making my bones and joints ache. It makes me wonder what they are doing to me. I hate drugs. I am really a hypocrite to be a nurse. I don't believe in what we do anymore. I don't think drugs really help. They relieve symptoms and fight infections and all of that, but always for a price. I am not referring to the money. I wouldn't usually take a treatment like this. Really, I am surprised at myself. I've known this doctor for a long time, as long as I have been in the south. He is kind and funny. He's fairly young 40ish and a family man with a good heart. I have never seen him yell at a nurse or even get irritated with a fellow health worker. He's human and he gets frustrated but not very often. So when he said, "You've had multiple fractures now, and we need to treat regardless of what the tests say." I agreed with him.

My grandmother had terrible osteoporosis. Her spine crumbled. She had the best diet on the planet, perfect weight, and she walked every day. She couldn't have done more for herself and her bones fell apart.

This is something I have to do even if it makes me feel bad. I've seen people with crumbled spines it's not pretty. I've already chosen hormone replacement therapy for bone strength over the risks too. If my bones are no good I'd just as soon go on and be with Jesus.

This was a pretty long digression. I started to tell you that I have been reading new blogs, and adding them to my never ending blog roll. Some of them are very special. I love to read them all but I would be lying if I didn't admit that I have favorites. Britt is my favorite world traveler she just shares beauty, and special places until I begin to wonder if a person could just up and die from beauty overload.

I have best friends on that blog roll. You know who they are and they know how much I love them. Some of you are people I wish I could know in real life. I feel like I know you and I would call you friend. My heart is big like that, I can love people easily, it doesn't take me long. I honestly love my patients. it's not long term until death do you part love, but it's love.

Today I fell in love. Not romantic, girl meets guy love. Love for a tender heart full of hope and beauty. A person with hopes, dreams, pioneer spirit and creativity. Someone who has put everything she has on the line for a dream.

I spent hours reading and going through back posts.

I kept hoping for a happily ever after ending. But this blog is about real life. It is a real young woman. A real young woman who has a dream for a bakery, a garden, an old house and a simple country life. She has budgeted down to eating on 84cents a day. She has sold all her treasures, her car, and economized to sacrifice for this, more than maybe any of us ever will, or can even imagine.

After reading and reading she in two sentences said, "the bakery is closed and I am losing the house."
Her grandfather has been sent home to die.

I want to curl up in a little ball and WEEP. I wish I had a big blog for the first time in my life. I wish I was a MckMama with a million hits or a Peedub at the Pioneer Woman. I wish we could all help her. I know about the woman who made up the fake baby to get help, but that should never stop us from helping. If we are to err let us err on the side of giving.

Her blog is titled, "My Messy Thrilling Life." It's one of the most courageous, inspiring, tender blogs I have ever read. Go read it , and lets see if we can help her keep her house. Go buy something in her Etsy store and add some zeros to your check.