Merry Christmas!

Since it's after midnight, I can officially wish you a Merry Christmas! There will be no "happy holidays" around here, I give you a full on Merry Christmas as this IS what the "holiday" truly is, no apologies required. Anyhoo, on Christmas Eve, we had our Christmas Eve church special, it was great fun, and it was my piano debut, I was part of a musical trio backing the choir. I played piano, one friend played violin and my other friend played guitar. We all pretty much know how to play our respective instruments, but we all had the same issue to get past, namely playing in public, being nervous, but we each played well, and the choir sang loud enough to mask any mistakes we made, LOL! We practiced a lot, and it paid off, the program went very well, everyone thinks I can play piano now, it will not be long and the church will expect me to start playing at church, the biggest problem about that is PB, he didn't like sitting without me, and somehow I don't think he will sit with me in front of the church (grin)!

I have been eyeballing a keyboard on line, it's the Yamaha YPG-235 76-key Portable Grand Graded-Action USB Keyboard, I listened to it on YouTube today, I had to wipe the drool off of my computer... I have been saving up my Amazon ad credits to purchase this keyboard, so if you love me (or at least enjoy reading my ramblings here), and you are going to be buying something on Amazon anyhow, please go through one of my Amazon links, even if you don't buy what is on the link, just click on the link then go on and buy whatever you were going to buy on Amazon, I'll get the credit from that sale, every little bit helps, thanks!!!!

This is the keyboard:

Here is a video that shows just a tiny bit of what this keyboard is capeable of. I tried to find a video of someone actually playing, but couldn't find one I was happy with, so here is what I did find, a great original song played on the Yamaha YPG-235.



OK, I just found someone actually playing this keyboard, enjoy!




Oh man, do I ever suffer from YTADD, for those who don't know what that is, it's YouTube Attention Deficit Disorder, that's what happens when you are looking for YouTube videos and start looking at all the other videos that show up on the page... I went from looking for videos on the keyboard to watching Yuri Lane, harmonica beatbox extraordinaire! If you have never heard Yuri Lane, look him up on YouTube, you're in for a huge treat.

Yes, Yuri is making ALL those sounds with his MOUTH at the same time he is playing his harmonica! How cool is that?!

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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Cookie Recipe

It's getting down to the line, many of us are scrambling to get the last minute Christmas stuff done. Here is a great last minute cookie recipe you can make for yourself, your guests or to give for gifts. You basically use cake mix as the base, from there you can add just about anything you want to customize your cookies. I had an out of date chocolate cake mix, I wasn't willing to toss it out, but I didn't trust using it to make a cake, so I used it to make a batch of chocolate cookies, I did add about a teaspoon of baking powder. They turned out pretty good, not quite as good as honest to goodness scratch made cookies, but they were still homemade and pretty tasty. The only thing I would do differently (on the chocolate ones) is I would add about a half cup of sugar, they weren't as sweet as I thought they should be. Another addition I am thinking of is candied cherries pushed into the center of each chocolate cookie.... yum!

Cake Mix Cookies

Using a purchased cake mix to make cookies is a fun way to save time in the kitchen. This recipe will work with any flavor of cake mix. You can also use Homemade Cake Mix.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:

* 18 oz. pkg. cake mix (any flavor)
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 egg

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients at low speed until dry ingredients are moistened and dough is thoroughly mixed. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls 2" apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 9-12 minutes. Cool two minutes on cookie sheets, then remove to wire racks to cool.

If using chocolate cake mix, add 2 Tbsp. water along with egg. You can stir in chocolate chips, coated candy pieces, chopped nuts, or oatmeal. Frost the cookies, using canned frosting, or make sandwich cookies by spreading frosting between two cookies. These Cake Mix Cookies should be stored tightly covered at room temperature so they stay soft.

Original recipe can be found here:
http://busycooks.about.com/od/cookierecipes/r/cakemixcookies.htm



All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

A Midnight Snack Gone Wrong

Tonight I went under the skycastle to get a jar of peanut butter. Taking a flashlight, I slipped out the door quietly so I wouldn't wake anyone up (PB or the Pekoe), it was late and all is quiet. I entered the cave like area under the house, it's dark, there are a lot of boxes and stuff down there. Before I entered the space, I check the dirt to see if there are any animal tracks, I an not interested in being down there with any other critters, there is no door, just the opening that goes into the space under the house, I see nothing out of the ordinary. I enter and begin working my way around the boxes and junk under there... then I see it, lying on the dirt, between myself and the peanut butter, a fully intact, (apparently) freshly dead bird, next to the bird is something unidentifiable, it was smaller than the bird, partially eaten, glistening in the light of my LED flashlight... I stop in my tracks, I hear nothing, I look around, I see nothing moving...

...I'm not creeped out by the dead bird, nor the partially eaten unidentifable whatever...

I am however, wondering just exactly what did I disturb that had just been having dinner under there...

I left without the peanut butter...




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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Updates

Yeah, I admit it, I've been ignoring my writing here... so here are the updates I've been neglecting. PB and I are doing just fine, life has been going on more or less as normal. I've been working more, cleaning both local churches now. I've been cleaning my church (our community church) for several months now. The other church in our community, the Baptist one, they have 2 dorm rooms that are typically used for traveling missionaries, each side has 5 or 6 sets of bunk beds, a full or queen sized bed, plus a little furniture here and there, each side has 2 showers, 2 toilets plus a separate room with 2 sinks. They like them cleaned just before new people show up, there is no point cleaning after they leave, everything gets horribly dusty within a few days anyhow, so I clean within a day or so of someone new coming in. I clean the Baptist church sanctuary about once a month, they don't require it any more often.

My church is a different story, I clean it at least once or twice a week, it depends on the the time of the month, food is served on a weekly basis, so I clean after food is served. We also have first Sunday dinner which both churches attend at our church, second Sunday dinner is held at the Baptist church. We eat a lot at church LOL. That means a lot of food spills, crumbs, all the grass, grass burs and dirt tracked in downstairs where the dining and kitchen areas are.

This is on top of the caretaker job I have, plus the various this and that little jobs, usually barter based. I'm not complaining, not at all, I enjoy being busy, I also enjoy having flexible schedules, sometimes I have to juggle things a bit to fit everything in, but all in all it's not bad.

It was bound to happen, being around more people, I finally got sick, I've been down for over a week now, it's finally getting better, but now PB is getting it. It all started out a week ago on Friday, I was leading the praise and worship service at church, it was decided that we would do our Christmas choir rehearsal immediately following the P&W service. I wasn't going to participate in the Christmas special, but it turned out that no one there knew how to work the music player in the church so I stayed to do that. I ended up singing too, I could feel my throat getting sore then. By the next morning, I had a full blown sore throat complete with a dry hacking cough. I thought it would only last a few days, nope, it has lasted over a week now. PB was such a sweetie, keeping the sky castle warm for me. Now it's my turn to nurse him.

I'm sitting here listening to Rush Limbaugh on the internet, it's streaming through a station we used to listen to in the DFW area, that means hearing the "local" news for that area, I have to tell you I don't miss living there, I'm hearing about all the car wrecks and traffic problems, on Dec 22, it will be 3 full years away from all of those headaches, I don't miss any part of it.

Here I sit, blowing my sore nose, glad most of the coughing is over, I went to church yesterday, it was basically the first time I'd been fully dressed in something besides PJs in over a week. I cleaned my church on Saturday, I was still sick but the church needed to be cleaned and I didn't expect to see anyone there. One of the ladies from the church did show up with a box of hay for the manger scene. She fussed at me for getting out while I was still sick, my reply was it needed to be done, we were going to have our first Sunday dinner the next day and I hadn't been up there that week to clean, and it did need it, badly! I also took the opportunity to practice on the piano. I'm getting better and better on it. I played a little before church on Sunday, one of the other ladies up there asked me how many years had I been playing... she didn't believe me that I hadn't been playing all of my life. Those lessons are really paying off! My biggest problem is my fingers get nervous when I am playing in front of anyone. So I need to play in front of people more and more.

That's enough for now, I have to get after the dishes, I've really let things go this last week.




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Wretha,

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Music

I have a new sponsor, this is for a great company that teaches you how to play piano by ear. I have tinked on the piano since I was a kid, though I haven't touched one in years. I never learned how to read music, I could put together a few chords, as long as they were easy ones (the key of C mostly). I had always hit this glass ceiling of playing. I have started a new music ministry at our church, at the same time our pianist quit (not related in any way to what I am doing). I had been tinking on the piano a bit at church, with the same results as before. I decided it was time for lessons, I knew I wouldn't be able to afford private lessons, even if I could, I didn't think I could find anyone locally who would teach me the style I wanted to play.

I started looking for gospel piano on line and found this company. They offer a course specific to gospel style of playing (think music you would hear at a black gospel church). I started to order just the first course, but they offered a great deal if I would go ahead and get the whole course, they offered a payment plan so I ordered the whole thing. I am so glad I did, I have only watched the first DVD lesson and it has made such a difference in my playing. I can't wait to watch the rest of the DVD lessons and implement what I learn.

Today was another praise and worship service at church, afterward we had our first rehearsal for our Christmas music special. Between the end of the praise and worship service and the rehearsal, I was practicing on the piano, the other people herd me, which was the point, my fingers get nervous when I think anyone can hear me, so I need to practice when other people are around to get used to it. Anyhoo, we started our rehearsal, we were using recorded Christmas music CDs, one of the songs just was in the wrong key for everyone to sing, it also went too fast for everyone's liking. The leader of the Christmas music program asked me to play that song on the piano, and I agreed! I can't believe I'm doing this. I played the song, Joy To The World with our violinist and guitar player, this is going to be an instrumental version. I found the song quite easy to play. I would probably NOT be doing this if I hadn't started my lessons with this company.

Check them out, if you have ever wanted to play piano (or organ, guitar, drums or vocals), you don't have to be able to read music (I don't read music), this teaches you to play by ear. It doesn't matter if you can play or not, they can teach you. I chose gospel style, they teach other styles too, but they specialize in gospel styles.


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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Good Quote

This is something I read on line, it's pretty accurate

What ever you give a woman, she will make it greater! Give her sperm, she will give you a baby. Give her a house, she will give you a home. Give her groceries, she will give you a meal. Give her a smile, she will give you a heart. She multiplies & enlarges what she is given. So, if you...give her crap, be ready for a ton of shit!

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

The Prodigal Son

Many years ago, I found a great gospel piano player and singer, Keith Green, his songs are like mini-stories told from the heart. Unfortunately for the rest of us, he was taken all too soon in a private plane crash in '82. Fortunately his music is still alive and well and still touches those who listen.

As part of my new music ministry I often choose at least one Keith Green song to play, this time I chose a song that is not found in any hymnal, it's called "The Prodigal Son", this song always brings tears to my eyes. While looking around the internet, I found a video, a mini-movie played to this song, it really brings this Biblical parable into the 21st century, please play this video, listen to the words, I hope you are as touched by this song (and video) as I am.


The Prodigal Son by Dean L Bauman from dean l bauman on Vimeo.



All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

My Mop Came In! Review

It finally came in, no I'm not complaining about how long it took, especially since the shipping was free (it took less than a week), I just couldn't wait to get it! I used the mop yesterday, at the church where I clean and at a lady's house where I clean. I am so impressed with this mop, it works even better than my original microfiber mop. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this mop!

When I received the box from UPS (thanks Bobby! You are the best!), the box looked too small to contain this mop. I opened it and discovered the mop handle is shipped in 2 parts, there were no instructions in the box, but it was pretty simple to put the two parts together, they snap into place. In the box I found the handles, 3 microfiber mop pads, and 2 bottles, I only expected to get 1 bottle, it was a pleasant surprise to get 2 bottles. After going back to Amazon and looking closer, I discovered that you are supposed to get 2. After playing with it for a bit, I washed the pads, you need to do that with any new microfiber product, otherwise you will leave a trail of microfiber dust the first time you use it.

When I got to the church, I swept the floor in the kitchen then I got to work with the mop, I had already filled the bottle with water, up to the first line that is nearly at the top of the bottle, I put in ammonia up to the second line, which ends up being a couple of tablespoons worth. It fit right into the receptacle on the handle with no dripping. The mop is balanced pretty well, though it does weigh a little more than my original microfiber mop. I pumped the trigger on the handle a couple of times to get it going. It began spraying a near perfect rectangle of liquid on the floor just in front of the mop head, the spray pattern was about the same size as the mop pad, not too much, not too little. On the first swipe, I realized that this was working much better than my original microfiber mop, it cleans better and picks up more dirt and liquid, I attribute that to the fact that the pads are much thicker. That means I will not have to rinse the pad as often, that is something you have to do with microfiber mops, just the same as you do with any mop, after you use it so long, you have to rinse them. With this mop, since it's thicker, it doesn't require rinsing as often, and since I have 3 mop pads, I just change the pad instead of rinsing. The only place I know of that you can get the whole mop kit with the extra pads and extra bottle, is through Amazon, if you buy direct from Rubbermaid, you get the mop with one pad and one bottle, you have to pay extra for more pads and bottles, plus you pay for shipping, through Amazon you get the whole kit, mop, 3 pads and 2 bottles with free shipping, that's the best deal I have found to date.

I used it on the floor, then put on a new pad and went to the glass doors (next time I'll do the glass first, that way I can continue using the same pad on the floors), I sprayed the ammonia water on the door and mopped the doors, inside and out. They came so clean! And no streaks, it dried perfectly clear, I also used it on the sliding glass doors on the front of the church, again with near perfect results. Makes me wish there was more to mop in the church! When I left there, I went to my friend's house where I clean, there is much more to mop there. Again, it worked perfectly over there, I used the mop head that I used on the glass at the church, it was clean enough to use on the floor without rinsing beforehand. So far everyone who has seen this mop wants one, one of my friends did buy one a few days after I ordered mine, she also ordered a dust mop head for hers, I wish now that I had gotten one of those too, perhaps next time I order from Amazon, I'll order one of those.

I give this mop a big thumbs up. It works like a Swiffer mop without having to buy refills of the pads and the cleaner.

One warning, do not use chlorine bleach in any way with microfiber material, it will destroy the material, that goes for any microfiber product you are using, and when you wash them, do not use fabric softener with them, it will soak up the fabric softener and will not pick up anything else after that, in fact it will make streaks where you use it. It's OK that it has static cling, and it will when you take it from the dryer, that helps the cloths work even better when you dry dust.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

E gads, Building, Politics, Religion and Buying Stuff

I'm pretty excited on a couple of fronts, first, PB is working on an addition to the sky castle, it started out as the deck on the west side, he expanded the deck then built a room on the end of the deck, this room is separate from the main part of the sky castle, it's a smallish room, meant to be used for storage and such, it can also be used as a guest room during warm weather, I wouldn't put anyone out there during winter without a majorly thick blanket. :)

Next I'm excited about voting day, yeah!!!! I haven't been this excited about voting in a long time, the biggest thing I'm excited about is I don't have to leave the neighborhood to vote, they are having it in a local church and I'll be there. I'll not discuss who I'll be voting for here, if you want to learn that, you'll have to go to my political blog.

Most of my wonderful readers are aware of my recent baptism, I've been a born again Christian since I was a teen, just didn't do the dunk until now. Since the baptism, I have been attending our non-denominational community church, I enjoy every part of it with one exception, the music. It's a bit on the dry side, and that's being kind. Not saying it was bad, the pianist played very well, just slow and sedate. The churches I have attended (regularly) in the past had great music, in fact the church I was saved in, the preacher had formerly been a honky-tonk bar owner, he played honky-tonk style piano, think Great Balls of Fire!, I also come from a very musical family, so I really wanted to spice up the music in church. I talked to our pastor about this and he asked me if I was volunteering for the job... the thing is, it's not a good to complain about something unless you are willing to do something about it, so yes, I volunteered, with the help of a couple of other friends who attend the church and feel the same way I do about the music.

I've never done anything like this before, but that never stops me from trying anything! I chose a variety of gospel and praise music, most with vocals, some without. I had a test run last Friday with a few people, I wanted to test out the music and the equipment at the church, it went very well, everyone enjoyed the music, everyone sang, clapped and moved around, exactly the way I had hoped it would happen. Next Friday, we will be having the first official praise and worship service, I hope a lot of people will attend, I suspect some will come just to see what this will be all about, I hope they enjoy it as much as I do and will keep coming back. It doesn't matter the number of those who attend though, if only those who came on the test run are there, I'll be happy.

Now to my next excitement. I have been pretty busy lately, cleaning houses for people, I now clean for both churches in the community, this is why I haven't been writing much. I prefer using fewer chemicals when I clean, I rely on microfiber cloths to do a lot of the cleaning, they don't require chemicals, just water, and they work great. Many years ago, I purchased a really good Microfiber Mop Kit with Aluminum Pole and Two Pads and I love it, I have had a couple of people want it, you can't find these in stores, only on line. I have seen some cheap knock-offs in stores, have even used a couple, they don't work as well, in fact the cheap ones I have found in the stores are horrible, the handle breaks, the pad doesn't pick up very well, the way the pad attaches to the mop is substandard.

A few weeks ago, I saw a commercial for a Rubbermaid Reveal Spray Mop Kit, it is designed like those Swiffer mops with the liquid cleaner and disposable pads. The difference is the Rubbermaid Reveal Spray Mop Kit uses microfiber pads (no disposable pads to throw away and have to repurchase) and it has a plastic bottle that you can use plain water or fill with water and a couple of tablespoons of the cleaner of your choice (so you don't have to purchase the proprietary Swiffer cleaner liquid). I can't wait to get this, it's supposed to come in next week, it is OK to get this excited about cleaning? LOL!

This mop kit comes with the mop handle, 3 microfiber cleaning pads and a refillable bottle, you put the pad on the mop, you put plain water or water with a little bit of cleaning fluid of your choice (I'll probably use ammonia), the bottle fits in a receptacle on the handle, there is a trigger on the handle you squeeze to spray the water/cleaner, then you mop. I like the idea that I'm getting more pads with this kit, it will save me from having to rinse the pads during mopping, when you use these microfiber mop pads, you have to rinse the pads from time to time.

I checked the Rubbermaid website and found they don't sell the kit, just the separate components, the mop (includes 1 pad and a bottle), the pads and the bottle, if you purchase everything it takes to make the kit from Rubbermaid, it costs significantly more plus you pay for shipping, if you go through the link above or below, you can get the kit (mop, 3 microfiber pads and bottle) with free shipping for significantly less.


I think if you use a Swiffer and you like it, you will love this!

I purchased another item, but that I'll keep under my hat for a while, I'm going to try it out, I hope it works, I'll post something about it later. I'll give you a hint, it has to do with smelling fresh and clean all day, it's completely natural, no chemicals are left on your skin or get on your clothes, and it never runs out.


All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

Better Harbor Freight Coupon!

I received another Harbor Freight coupon flier via email, this one has the 45 watt solar panel kit listed at $169.99, quite a savings even off of the sale price of $199.99. Here is the actual coupon as seen on the individual coupon link:

Here are the links to the flier:
http://widgets.harborfreight.com/wswidgets/common/displayCoupon.do?hdr=mag&week=4410&campaign=a_retail&page=4410a_retail.html&cust=78062728788&keycode=0000

individual coupon link:
http://widgets.harborfreight.com/wswidgets/common/displayCoupon.do?week=4410&campaign=a_retail&page=coupon2.html&cust=78062728788&keycode=0000&single=true

This is good through Nov 25, 2010

All written text from this blog are copyrighted and owned by Wretha unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved, You may download or copy for your own personal enjoyment, but please do not distribute without written permission. You may post a portion of this (or any) message from this blog on another site as long as you include a link back to this site and the original message.

Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!