Mermaid Cafe

Last week I was indulging in my new musical obsession with Girl Singers, specifically those of the Jazz / Blues genre, when I came across Sara Gazarek’s cover of Joni Mitchell’s Carey.  The second verse starts:

Come on down to the Mermaid Café and I will buy you a bottle of wine
And we’ll laugh and toast to nothing and smash our empty glasses down
Let’s have a round for these freaks and these soldiers, A round for these friends of mine

In high school my twin sister and her best friend adopted the Mermaid as a kind of totem, based somewhat on the story Where Do the Mermaids Stand?

When I heard this song I was reminded that even though they grow-up, mermaids they still remain. Those teen-aged girls who became strong, beautiful and compassionate women, they never forget that they are mermaids, even when the reality of being adults feels like it will drag the beauty and joy out of belief.

When you go about the business of your world today, keep a look out for mermaids.  They can be found in the most unusual of places.

To make these healthy snacks:

1 1/2 cups of dried mission figlets, with the stem removed

10 to 12 dried whole dates

22 oz (2 small boxes) raisins

1/4 cup of salted sunflower kernels or crushed walnut pieces.

Take all these ingredients  for a spin in the food processor until they form a thick paste.  If you pulse it 10 or 15 times when you start mixing it may help to incorporate the sunflower seeds.

Using 1 Tablespoon of the mixture per piece, form the paste into a ball using your hands (a little spritz of oil applied to the hands helps with the stickiness) play dough style. Flatten the bottom slightly and press one side into a snout type triangle for the body of your hedgehog.  Put a sunflower kernel into the pointed end for a nose and then place kernels into the rounded end for the quills.

If you get tired of making the hedgehogs (or you run out of time) you can also keep the candy in a ball shape and roll in a crushed nut mixture.  When I say roll I mean pick up little pinches and push them firmly into the sides of the ball then watch while the majority of it does not stick.  This version is pictured top left.

hope:

noun

1. the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

How incredible is it that our jobs here at the Mary Abbott House yield this simple word for the victims we serve.  Hope.  For those sweet, innocent souls that often time have no understanding of what has happened to them.  Hope.  For those sweet, innocent souls that do.  Hope.  The Mary Abbott House offers it freely and gives it out abundantly.  Hope.  It drives the investigator to continue working through the most painful details in order to ensure the child will receive their fair shot at a normal life.  Hope.  It helps focus the forensic interviewer on recovering the most important piece of evidence, a child’s story.  Hope.  It gives the family advocate and volunteers the right words to relay to a grieving parent.  Hope.  It might not be what the child expects to receive when they arrive, but it’s what they embrace as they leave.

We have incredible jobs here at the Mary Abbott House.  I’m proud to be a part of this team.

1) Your boss to be out at a meeting

2) A stash of office supplies like this

Whatever time you estimate it will take you for this small bit of Friday fun – double it and make sure you have pliers, zip-ties and rubber bands.

T-Rex from Office Supplies

T-Rex Action Shot

Inspiration T-Rex

Have a great weekend.

A PEACE OFFICER’S CHRISTMAS

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the streets,
not a person was stirring, ‘cept an officer on the beat.
As he quietly patrolled the town with great care,
children and parents slept peacefully there.

The officer was clad in his blues and his vest,
gun on his hip, always looking his best.
He’d just pulled aside for a quick bite to eat,
When all of a sudden, out on the street,

A bright light appeared from out of nowhere,
He shielded his eyes from the brilliant glare.
‘Twas an angel of the Lord at the squad’s rear,
He smiled and spoke, “Dear Officer, don’t fear.”

“I’ve been sent by God with a message for you
who faithfully serve while wearing the blue.
He wants you to know He loves you all,
He’s pleased with the way you’ve answered His call.

“To protect and serve others, so selfless you’ve been,
Your bravery and kindness have known no end.
Even in tragedy, when nights became long,
You’ve helped countless strangers by being strong.

“God sees your heart, the joy and the pain,
He knows the profession can often bring strain.
So he sent me here to let you know,
That as you patrol, He goes where you go.

“As you protect others, your Father protects you,
His angels go with you, His Spirit does, too.
No bullet too fast, no bad guy too strong,
I’m sent to make sure that your life will be long.

“So fear not the night, and fear not the day,
fear not the threats that might come your way.
I’m sent to accompany you on your beat,
There’s not one moment you’re alone on the street.”
The officer sat stunned by the love of His God,
He bowed his head, with a tear gave a nod.
As the officer said thank you, the angel took flight,
“God’s got your back, carry on, and goodnight.”

Detective David Freudiger

Norman Police Department

All the food was amazing.  The Corn Casserole, which I have  been calling Corn Crack , recipe has kindly been provided by Shannon:

Here is the recipe for the corn dish as  promised.

2 cans of drained corn

2 cans of creamed corn, (not drained of course)

2 boxes of jiffy corn muffin mix (for plain corn casserole) also, this is where I bought 2 pkgs of the dry Mexican corn bread mix for the Mexican casserole I made you guys)  I believed I used the Martha White Mexican corn bread mix.

1 stick of melted butter

1 pint of whipping cream

Totally ignore the instructions on the corn bread mix packages.

Mix all ingredients together and bake around 350 for about 1 hour. An inserted knife or toothpick will be fairly clean when testing the dish for doneness.  The casserole is so moist it will never be totally clean!

Thanks Shannon!

So I was gonna spend some time “working” to find a post for today and I thought “Best of 2011” – everyone else is doing a best of list.  I started perusing the posts and realized that picking a top 5 or 10 would be no easy task and really way more “work” then I have time for with the other work I have to do before I can call today done.

So no “Best of”, instead I want to say a huge thank-you to all the people who have invested time (one of life’s most valuable commodities) and energy to write posts this year.

To the Board Members who took my survey and others who posted – Ya’ll Rock.

David, John, Dustin, Kris, Rebecca, Kathe and Natalie  – Thank you for participating in this adventure with me. Your wit, humor and passion make this a blog worth reading.

By conducting just a little on-line research, I find that about 45 to 52% of you barrel into EACH New Year with this fantastic resolve.  Remarkably, only about 12% of you “succeed” at your goals.  And just what do people endeavor to do?  The most popular concepts involve improving something, losing something, quitting something, holding onto more of something, or finding something.  No wonder most people have tossed their hands in the air by the time Ground Hog Day rolls around!  Oh-and here’s the best part- you only have 10 more months to beat yourself over the head for “failing” again, and to begin planning for 2013! Yippee!!

Check this out, people:  Contrary to what my office mates will tell you, I am not a pessimist….I am a realist.  Really.    The glass is neither half-full, nor half-empty.  It’s just a glass.  If it’s my glass, it simply requires more liquid.  How about this?  Just be.  Wake up every morning.   That’s a start.  Just wake up.  Some days when I wake up, I feel on top of the world; and other days I wonder which one of you is going to piss me off first.  Who are the Jones’s and why do they get to decide at what pace I must run; or stroll, in my case.

This year I don’t resolve to do or be anything different.  I will, however, continue to see humor when faced with dismal circumstances, I will cry when I’m hurt or mad or just because I’m having that kind of day.  I will curl up in my recliner and watch 12 hours of Katherine Hepburn movies when I could be doing my spring cleaning.  I will eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner, and I will have a large cup of coffee and three cigarettes for breakfast.  I will have “blue” conversations at the dinner table, and I will tap into my 12-year-old-boy sense of humor whenever possible.

That’s my resolution.  I think this year; I’ll try to do more of the same.

Kris Albertson-Realist.