Good Morning and a very happy Friday to you! If you happen to live in the Pacific Northwest, did you see the stars last night? AMAZING! I stood there in the cold, night air, looking up at the most incredibly clear sky. I love this time of year so much!
Today I need to get myself around to go run errands and for an appointment, then home for the rest of the day. Usually I’d prefer not to leave the house on my day off, but Moose is going to go with me, so I can have company. He does enjoy getting to go on a ride, so his happy doggy face will keep me smiling.
Verse of the Day
November 9, 2018
‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.’
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
Nothing stains quite as sin. It not only leaves a stain in our heart but a residue in our minds. But God’s grace is shown in that he doesn’t just forgive our sins, he doesn’t just forget our sins, he banishes them. They are gone. The stain is removed, the guilt is taken away. We are clean by his grace.
I Am Thankful For . . .
Do you ever stay in a situation where you are not happy for reasons that seem logical at the time? I know I tend to do that. I stayed in an abusive marriage to a man who not only treated me horribly, but who couldn’t stay faithful from right after we were married when I was just 18 years old. I stayed because I made a vow, for our children, because I was scared. He finally left me for one of the women he was cheating with, soon after leaving her for the same reason. The relief I felt when I was finally out of the situation and over the shock of suddenly being not married was profound. I did the same thing with the last job I had – I stayed for the paycheck, the benefits and my office mate. And, even though I couldn’t stand the morals, ethics and attitudes of the people who remain there, I likely would have stayed for the same reasons even after my office mate moved away, had they not decided for me that I was no longer going to work there. Now that I am in a job where I am appreciated, for the same money, and around people who are positive and have integrity, I am relieved to be away from people who I know have no qualms about doing things that are legally questionable, and who are incredibly bitchy just for the sake of being that way. Today I am thankful that I am not stuck in situations that make me unhappy, sad, depressed and at times, put my safety in jeopardy.
Chaos Never Dies – Have you ever caught yourself saying . . . “Someday, when my schedule is normal, I’ll be able to ________.” (Fill in the blank with whatever it is you thought you might do when that elusive SOMEDAY arrives. I know I’ve said it . . . for many, many years. Know what? “Normal” is something that doesn’t seem to exist! It seems like there is always turmoil in our everyday lives. Things are always a little on the crazy side at home. Everything is always GO GO GO! And when, on rare occasion, things do seem to calm down a bit, along comes something to disrupt the peace again, and disorder rules the day. Hectic schedules, changes to plans, unexpected tasks and chores . . . the list could go on and on! Well, today is for those of us who suffer from this problem. Today we recognize the chaos in our lives and acknowledging – admitting if you will – that CHAOS DOES NOT DIE! Nope, it is a way of life. If this is something you just cannot accept, I’d suggest picking the one thing that is really disrupting your life and change it . . . for good. You may never find normal, but maybe you can find a good imitation for it. And look on the bright side! No matter how chaotic today may seem . . . it’s only a few weeks until Christmas! hahahaha!
Kristallnacht – On the night of November 9, 1938, and into the next morning, there was a massive, coordinated attack on Jews throughout the German Reich. This night has come to be known as Kristallnacht or The Night of Broken Glass. This attack happened after Herschel Grynszpan, a 17-year old Jew living in Paris, shot and killed a German Embassy staff member in retaliation for how his father and family had suffered at the hands of the Nazis in Germany. You see, on October 27th, his family – along with over 15,000 other Jews, had been forced to leave Germany, put into train boxcars, then dumped at the Polish border. Adopf Hitler and his Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels, this shooting in Paris gave them the opportunity to incite the Germans to “rise in bloody vengeance against the Jews.” On November 9th, mob violence broke out as the German police stood back and crowds of people watched. Nazi storm troopers, along with members of the SS and Hitler Youth beat and murdered Jews, broke into and destroyed Jewish homes, and brutalized Jewish women and children. The mayhem spread and all over Germany, Austria and other Nazi controlled areas, Jewish shops and department stores had their windows smashed and the contents destroyed. Synagogues were especially targeted for vandalism, including the desecration of sacred Torah scrolls. Hundreds of synagogues were burned while the local fire departments stood by, or simply prevented the fire from spreading to the surrounding buildings. There were about 25,000 Jewish men rounded up and later sent to concentration camps, where they were often brutalized by SS guards, and in some cases beaten to death. Outside of Germany, the reaction to Kristallnacht was shock and outrage, a storm of negative publicity in newspapers and among radio commentators. This isolated Hitler’s Germany from the civilized nations and weakened any pro-Nazi sentiments in those countries. Not long after Kristallnacht the United States recalled its ambassador permanently. In Germany, on November 12th, top Nazis had a meeting concerning the economic impact of the damage and to discuss what further measures they wanted to take against the Jews. It was reported that there were 7500 businesses destroyed, 267 synagogues burned (with 177 completely destroyed) and 91 Jews killed. It was even requested that new decrees be put into place to bar Jews from having any further contact with Germans by excluding them from using public transportation, schools and even hospitals. This forced the Jews into ghettos and even out of the country. They made the Jews clean out the debris from the burned-out synagogues, which would be turned into parking lots afterwards. It was also decided at this meeting to eliminate Jews entirely from economic life in the Reich by transferring all Jewish property and enterprises to ‘Aryans’, with very little given to the Jews in compensation, and that in the form of bonds. Adding insult to injury, all of the massive insurance claims that came out of Kristallnacht was billed to the Jews and any money due them from the insurance would be confiscated by the State. The following statement was made by regarding the Jews in Germany, “I shall close the meeting with these words, German Jewry shall, as punishment for their abominable crimes, et cetera, have to make a contribution for one billion marks. That will work. The swine won’t commit another murder. Incidentally, I would like to say that I would not like to be a Jew in Germany.” It is abominations such as these that the world needs to always remember, to hold in our hearts as a shield against such violent horrors from ever happening again. We cannot close our eyes and hearts to such things, we cannot forget and pretend that this history – this black mark on humanity – ever occurred, or we risk being blind to it in the future. May God have mercy on our souls if the world allows this type of travesty again. Just a thought: Revisionist History is not History at all. It is Fiction. May we never forget where we have been, so we do not go there again. This is something to keep in mind – and ask yourself a question – when you are watching the “news” or the news, and you see reports on Antifa and the chaos and mayhem they are unleashing on innocent people, when you see them attacking someone’s home and family because they either disagree with them, or were paid to do so, who do they resemble? To me, they resemble the Nazis in this day of remembrance, committing abominations against people simply because of who they are. In this case, Antifa is not attacking just Jews, but anyone who is a Republican, conservative, straight, Christian, etc. Get serious people – wake up. The idiots who call our President a Nazi apparently knows absolutely NOTHING about real history, or what being a Nazi was all about.
This Day in History –
1927 – Giant Pandas are discovered in China.
Food Celebration of the Day
National Greek Yogurt Day – I really like Greek yogurt and apparently many other people do too! It has become so popular that more than 1/3 of the yogurts at the grocery stores are of the Greek Yogurt variety. It feels thicker and richer to me, so it feels like a decadently healthy treat. What I did not know is that Greek yogurt is actually Turkish. I did not know that. Thank you www.foodimentary.com for these tidbits of information. The creation of yogurt was by accident due to primitive milk storage which turned the milk to yogurt. Yogurt contains a high amount of lactic acid, which is good for your skin. Of course, one of the main reasons I love yogurt is that it contains the good bacteria which our bodies need to promote healthy digestion and support our immune systems. Go Greek Yogurt!
National Scrapple Day – Scrapple? What on earth is scrapple? People on the east coast, or who were from there originally anyway, will likely know what this is, but I can tell you that it’s very likely if you ask someone that question who was born and raised on the west coast, they won’t know what it is. Scrapple is the invention born of frugality, and a love of pork. It was inspired by the Pennsylvania Dutch. It’s basically a pork breakfast food, popular in Philadelphia and the surrounding area. It can often be found in NJ Diners. That doesn’t answer what it is though . . . well hold your stomachs because I’m going to tell you. Scrapple was made from the end meats, or scraps, of an animal after the butchering process of choice cuts were done. They wanted to be sure that they whole hog was used, leaving no waste. Can’t fault that, right? The pork was boiled in water or broth in a pot with seasonings, until tender. This allows the meat on the bones to slip off easily. The pork is then taken out of the liquid to be cut, torn or pulled, while the solution simmers. The pork meat is then returned to the pot and the whole concoction is boiled with cornmeal or buckwheat and cooked to a consistency that will just about let the spoon stand up by itself in the pot. Loaf pans are lined with plastic wrap, then the liquid scrapple is poured inside, and the loaves refrigerated overnight. In the morning the cold loaf is sliced into 1/4 inch slices and fried in butter, bacon fat, back fat or vegetable oil, until the edges are crispy and brown, and the inside is moist and soft. Scrapple has been made through the years using various hog parts, spices and methods . . . including all the parts we don’t want to think about eating. When I was researching this, I did find that many scrapple recipes are out there that use ham, sausage, bacon and even beef or turkey! Interesting. I admit, I think that it was the various meat parts that we wouldn’t ordinarily eat that I would not be OK with eating. Regardless of whether you would eat scrapple or not, it has been around for at least 200 years, and is enjoyed with eggs, and topped with either maple syrup or ketchup. Interesting, right?
I need to hurry up and get out of here. I have my appointment, I promised to swing by my hubby’s shop to take the guys a treat, and I have to hurry home, so I can get my menu plan made up for the weekend and next week, so we can go shopping after hubby gets home from work tonight. Busy, busy, busy! God bless you and I’ll see you tomorrow!
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Celebration list sources:
www.verseoftheday.com www.brownielocks.com www.holidayinsights.com www.thenibble.com www.foodimentary.com