Forgiven and Reconciled

I am loved.

I have been forgiven.

I am reconciled.

Thank you!

A Psalm of David. A Contemplation.* Blessed [is he whose] transgression [is] forgiven, [Whose] sin [is] covered.

Blessed [is] the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit [there is] no deceit.

When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long.

For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah

I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You In a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters They shall not come near him.

You [are] my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.

Do not be like the horse [or] like the mule, [Which] have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you.

Many sorrows [shall be] to the wicked; But he who trusts in the LORD, mercy shall surround him.

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous; And shout for joy, all [you] upright in heart! (Psalms 32:1-11 NKJV)

Stalked

I was stalked recently.

It wasn't very scary.

Who was stalking me?

Well...

Less of a who and more of a what.

And now, of course, I want to take a ride in a hot air balloon.

Think I can talk J into taking me right after buying a house?

Sigh.

Life is so hard.

:-D

Magnificent Transformation

We did just a tiny bit of work at the Denver house yesterday. We were able to witness a magnificent transformation.

You too can have a magnificent transformation. Just follow this simple formula:

Step 1: Discover the jungle that's living in your very own backyard.

Step 2: Pull/clip/tear/rip-out-ferociously any and all foliage that's in your way of discovering what lies beneath.

*tip: be watchful for lions, tigers, and/or bears that might be lurking beneath the jungle bed of foliage

Step 3: Revel in what you've discovered! Who KNEW there were stairs under all of that?!?!

Rejoice with me in this magnificent transformation! And tell me about any of your own :-)

1220 Steinmetz Rd, Denver, PA

So we placed an offer on a house and it was accepted. Want pictures? Great! Here you go...

Homemade Grape Juice

I recently made grape juice with a friend. I didn't realize that she was making it with Concord grapes. These were my Grandma's favorite kind of grape. I don't know how I never ended up trying one before.

They're awesome.

And bitter.

So, it was so easy to make the juice, and so inexpensive when compared to store juices, I decided to make some myself. Here are the instructions:

First buy the grapes.

This is 1/2 bushel (pretty heavy)

Purchase at any Amish roadside stand, or Glenwood Foods, a discount grocery store.

This box cost me $7.95 (no tax)

Next wash the grapes.
Then pluck them from their clusters and deposit into quart jars (2.5 cups loose grapes per jar)
Then add the syrup. Merely 3 parts water to 1 part sugar. I can't believe that's any worse than the sugar content of grape juice in the stores...but it was still shocking...

See the awesome mix of colors? The sugary syrup was boiling when I added it. It caused the hot water to rise and start seeping color out of the grapes while the colder water waited at the bottom.

I do want to know why purple grapes make red grape juice. Any ideas?
Then can. Put in a humungo pot (called a canner) and bring to a "rolling boil" (just a really, really hard boil). Leave in canner for 15 minutes.

Remove and voila -- homemade grape juice (in concentrate. Add 1 quart water when serving).
So my $7.95 and two hours of time made me 15 quart jars of grape juice. I can feel my pockets lining with my savings already...

Now if only my Grandma was around to try it with me.

Sigh :-\

Horray for Best Friends

Meet Barry and Lacey.

He's her hubby and she's my best friend :-)

They recently came to town due to the tragic loss of someone close to Barry.

Though they received my condolences, I was ecstatic to see my BF* so soon after moving...though it's seemed like forever since I last saw her.

*It was nice to see you too Barry (smile)

And one pic of my new bangs. I think I need to cut them shorter though...

Yay for friendship and staying up all night to hang out!

Got a Cig?

DISCLAIMER: I do not support smoking. I chose this pic because it cracked me up. "Healthier." Is this a cancer-free type of cigarette? Oh, and that outfit and shoes, does that come with the cigarette too?

Oh, and NO. You will not look like this if you smoke. You will likely end up wrinkled with yellow teeth and cancer in your lungs.

But...on a more amusing note...

Have you ever wondered where cigarettes come from? Ever found yourself sitting in your office one day, not being productive because you couldn't dispel the curious musings?

Well wonder no more, my friends!

The Tobacco Fairy has come to enlighten you :-)

This is tobacco.

This is how they* bundle it when it's dried to a crisp.

*See "them" in the background.

This is how they grow it. Rows and rows of it.

*Note how "they" get around. Mode of transportation in bottom right of shot.

This is how "they" dry it. See it hanging to dry?

And that barn isn't falling down,

those boards are strategically bent out to allow air flow.

"They" are ingenious, don't you think?

One more pic, just for fun.

So, that's how tobacco is grown, harvested, and dried. This is how it's sold.

I don't know about you, but I think it's much prettier in the fields.

Probably healthier if we leave it there too, huh?

Admire the pictures.

But don't smoke the cancer stick.