Fremont Ave. N

I got the last one of the Fremont Ave. N street signs from the City of Seattle today. Fremont signs were popular so I was really happy that I was able to get one. Perserverance paid off as I had been trying since September 3rd to get one. I grew up on Fremont Ave. and have lots of memories there. I remember walking heel-to-toe, heel-to-toe all the way from home to the corner of 110th and then Dad came up the street from taking my sister and a neighbor girl to school. He turned around and opened the truck door and put his head down on the steering wheel and said "WHY can't you get to school on time? " I wasn't sure what he was going to do with me so I just stood there beside his truck waiting. This was the first time I had seen my Dad weep over me. (I hated school.) Anyway he told me to get in the truck and he would take me to school. He let me off in front of the school but I had to cross a very busy street as the school patrol had already gone in. I made it across ok. Went to my class and started to take my coat off to hang it up in the coat closet when my teacher Miss Teague made me go stand out in the hall for being late. I was in 2nd grade at the time. A girl walked past me in the hallway and said to me "Why don't you go on in?" and I said to her "Because I don't WANT to." ( I wasn't about to tell her that I couldn't as my pride was in the way.) Ah, such is the trials and tribulations of being a kid.

Playland was just up the street from us and we could hear the screams from the Roller Coaster a mile up the street. We could see the lights of the Roller Coaster too. When it was the Fourth of July we could watch the fireworks from there as well as the ones from Green Lake so we had quite a time watching in both directions. Now all these are just a memory.

I went from first grade through high school and until I was married in 1960 living there on Fremont Ave.

Ah, sweet memories are made of things like this. Some people would probably think I was crazy for wanting a street sign at my age, but nostalgia makes one a little bit crazy and it is a fun sort of "crazy"! Hope you enjoy some fun memories of your own and be a little bit "crazy" too!
Happy hunting!

Blazing Skies ~ Blazing Beauty

How beautiful is a firey sunset in the evening! God just paints such beautiful murals in the sky and leaves us in awe of His handiwork!

And then there are those who say "There is no God!" How can they deny Him? Oh, I know they come up with all their "educated" scientific ideas, but then they miss out on the HEART of the beauty ...the composition of the clouds that plays with the colors and gives us a breathtaking palette of beauty untouched by human hands. Think about it~ ponder it and then tell me there is no God! I'll never be convinced. He is the Master Painter of all!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

From this:




To this:

In just a day this beautiful "Livin' Easy" rosebud went from a bud to flower. It blossomed out to a gorgeous rose. This is like our lives at each new stage and how it blossoms out with beauty. First we are born as a tiny baby and our toddler years are full of new discoveries and then as we enter our teen years we blossom out some more in new directions and ways. We enter our young adult life with much expection and anticipation: college, marriage, travel, career, and family. Then as the family grows and leave we enter into another stage of our life and then the grandchildren come and each one is different as well. Think of the beauty of FAMILY like these beautiful Vigerosa roses to the right. They bloom where they are planted and bring beauty to the world around them.

Are you bringing beauty to your "world" or are you more like a weed patch that just causes no end of trouble in the Garden of Life?

"Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop is useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned." Heb. 6:7-8

Which reflects you and your life today?

The Proposal - author unknown

When a company falls on difficult times, one of the things that seems to happen is they reduce their staff and workers. The remaining workers must find ways to continue to do a good job or risk that their job would be elimated as well.

Wall Street, and the media normally congratulate the CEO for making this type of "tough decision", and his board of directiors gives him a big bonus.

Our government should not be immune from similar risks.

Therefore:

Reduce the House of Representatives from the current 435 members to 218 members.

Reduce Senate members from 100 to 50 (one per state). Then, reduce their staff by 25%.

Accomplish this over the next 8 years (two steps/two elections) and of course this would require some redistricting.

Some Yearly Monetary Gains Include:

$44,108,400 for elimations of base pay for congress (267 members x $165,200 pay/member/yr.)

$97,175,000 for elimination of their staff, (estimate $1.3 Million in staff per each member of the House, and $3 Million in staff per each member of the Senate every year.)

$240,294 for the reduction in remaining staff by 25%.

$7,500,000,000 reduction in pork barrel ear-marks each year. (those members whose jobs are gone. Current estimates for total government pork earmarks are of $15 Billion/yr).

The remaining representatives would need to work smarter and improve efficiencies. It might even be in their best interests to work together for the good of our country!

We may also expect that smaller committees might lead to a more efficient resolution of issues as well. It might even be easier to keep track of what your representative is doing.

Congress has more tools available to do their jobs than it had back in 1911 when the current number of repsentatives was established. (telephone, computers, cell phones to name a few).

Note:

Congress did not hesitate to head home when it was a holiday, when the nation needed a real fix to the economic problems. Also, we had 3 senators that were not doing their jobs for the 18 + months (on the campaign trail) and still they all have accepted full pay. These facts alone support a reduction in senators & congress.

Summery of opportunity:
$44,108,400 reduction of congress members.
$282,100,000 for elimination of the reduced house member staff.
$180,000,000 for elimination of reduced senate member staff.
$59,675,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining house members.
$37,500,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining senate members.
$7,500,000,000 reduction in pork added to bills by the reduction of congress members.
$8,073,383,400 per year, estimaed total savings (that's 8-BILLION just to start!)

Big business does these types of cuts all the time

If Congresspersons were required to serve 20, 25 or 30 years (like everyone else) in order to collect retirement benefits, tax payers could save a bundle.

Now they get full retirement after seriving only ONE term.

If you are happy with how Congress spends our taxes you can ignore this message. Otherwise I assume you know what to do.

What To Do With Those Big Ripe Juicy Tomatoes...

Here are some great recipes for those nice big juicy homegrown tomatoes you don't know what to do with.
Compliments of the Seattle Times

Baslamic Roasted Tomato Sauce

(Use the best vine ripened tomatoes you can find)

2 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, cored
3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup baslamic vinegar
1/2 cup sliced shallots
6 large garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Corsely ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to mix well. Transfer to a roasting pan. Roast 1 hour, until tomatoes are blackened.
3. Transfer to a food processor. Process until well blended. Makes about 5 cups.

Per (2/3 cup) serving: 260 calories, 24g fat, 0mg chol., 1g prot., 9g carbs., 1g fiber, 300mg sodium.


Liz's Simple No-Bake Tomato Sauce

Toss vine-ripe tomatoes with garlic, basil and olive oil, let them sit, and they get juicier and juicier. Toss with pasta, spoon over chicken or beef, or simply eat with a spoon.

6 large tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Coarsely ground black pepper

1. Chop tomatoes and place in a bowl.
Add garlic, olive oil, basil, salt and pepper. Toss gently. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature 2 to 4 hours. Serves 6.

Recipe by Liz Shenk,
Relish Recipe Tester

Per serving: 100 calories, 7g fat, 0mg chol., 2g prot., 8g carbs., 2g fiber, 90mg sodium.


Roasted Tomatoes

Roasting concentrates tomatoes' natural sugars and flavors and gives them a buttery rich texture. Toss in pasta, top pizza or bruschetta, or serve alongside chicken or beef.

Preheat oven to 400F. Slice and core tomatoes. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Ddrizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with kosher salt, pepper and sliced garlic. Bake 30 to 60 minutes, until juises have evaporated. Store in a plastic zip-top bag in refrigerator or freezer. You can also slow roast tomatoes in a 250F oven 3 to 4 hours.