What a nice birthday. I finished a quilt square. I seeded a bit of the lawn that has been in need of reseeding. Dick took me out for dinner to the Villager. (I had a filet - for some reason I have been wanting a steak lately, probably because we eat so little beef.)

I received cards from almost all the kids and Bret called tonight. So it has been a full day.


That is all I am writing tonight.

"May you recognize in your life the presence, power, and light of your soul.

May you realize that you are never alone."

From Anam Cara by John O'Donohue

Love

Mary

I just got home. It is 9:30PM. Bobbie and I worked at Rhine for the bust up party for the spring trap and pistol leagues. Jim got a first place Marksman Trophy for his pistol shooting this time.

The meal was excellent. We had barbequed chicken, broasted potatoes, potato salad, baked beans prepared by Gary Hefter. This was followed by two, count 'em, two desserts. Sara Behr prepared rhubarb tort and Bill Olson brought his famous peach cobbler. Both were excellent and it reminds me that I must check the rhubarb. I believe there is enough for a pie in my garden.

Tomorrow is my birthday. Cards started to arrive today. I received one from Mother, from my friend Esther Hasler and her son Adam and the office staff at Blessed Trinity. Bobbie brought hers with her tonight. They are all special. People are so good to acknowledge it. I can't believe that I will be 65 years old tomorrow. I remember that when I was young I marveled at the fact that in the year 2000 I would be 60 years old and that seemed so very far away. Way beyond my sight. I guess that it is important to remember that we don't have to look that far ahead. We just have to live each day to its fullest and treasure everything and everyone that comes our way.

All my love

Mary

This evening was my music night. Both regular choir and bell choir. I enjoy both so it is a good thing. I have a long way to go on the bells. I am finding out that there is more to ringing them than just ringing. You can dampen and clank and trebble and I suppose other things too. I am still just trying to keep time and remember to ring.

We got our German Music tonight. I think I told you that most of the Blessed Trinity Choir members are joining the choir at mass at Germanfest on July 31. We are going on the bus and will spend the afternoon enjoying the festival after singing. The big challenge is learning the read the German. I think I will practice the melody and beat with la las before then. We will have two practices with the main choir in July.

It was chilly and damp all day today. My understanding is that it is going to warm up by Sunday but will keep on raining. I know we need the rain but a little sun always does wonders for the spirit. Besides, I have a bit a planting to do and I also know that it will take some warmth to make the seeds I planted sprout.

You know how the song goes. "Someone bless the seeds I sow, Someone warm them from below, til the rain comes tumblin'down." We are getting the tumblin'down without the warming.

I think Chelsea is ready to go to bed. At this time of night she always looks a little wobegone if I stay up.

Tomorrow night is bust up for the pistol league at Rhine Plymouth. Bobbie and I are working too so it will be a long night. At least we won't have to be collecting any money, as the bust up is a freebee.

Love

Mary

Today I DID get to stay home all day. I cooked up a storm. We are having stew tonight but I got a big enough chuck roast to make three different dishes.

We will have the stew tonight and I also made "Old Rags", a Cuban Dish that tastes wonderful over rice and I have the dough for pasties in the refrigerator. That dough has to sit overnight and tomorrow, I will combine the meats and veggies and complete them. I think I'll ask Mom over for Sunday dinner and we can have the pasties.

The dishwasher people came AGAIN today. They replaced almost the whole machine including the drain hose which they say they think has been the problem. We will know in a couple of weeks. That dishwasher has just been a curse and Bosch is supposed to be the best. The repairman says that he advised his son to put one in his new home, so that says something.

We are watching reruns of How to Marry a Millionaire. I have watched Regis for probably 30 years or more. Off and on of course. I bring this up because when I saw him first he had a local show in the Los Angeles area with Cindy Garvey. Cincy was a lovely blond lady who was at the time married to Steve Garvey. It was a very similar format to the Regis and Kelly show. The two of them bantering and guests. She was a lot more formal but certainly the times were also more formal. One day they had a blind actor call Tom Sullivan on the show. He apparantly was visiting with her while she was getting ready and dressed for the show. She mentioned that she felt a little odd changing in front of him but knew that he couldn't see and therefore was comfortable. He simply said that he operated on sound and smell. She turned forty shades of green and moaned.


Have a nice evening.

Love


Mary

It is still rather damp and rainy in Wisconsin. I am trusting that the weather predictions are correct and that we will reach 70 by Sunday.

Friday night is the bust up party at Rhine Plymouth and Bobbie and I are also assigned to work. I always like to get two things done at once and the bust up party is easy to work because there is no money exchanged the drinks and shooting is all free. Yippee.

Today, Dick and I went grocery shopping and to the bank in the morning. Then this afternoon, I went to see Dr. Casey to have my neck adjusted.

While out, I took Ken, my sister Dolores's husband, the turkey stuff that he had lent to me and brought them the finished Wild Grape Wine that Dick and I made from the wild grapes that Dolores and I gathered from the vines in their back yard two years ago this September.

Dolores asked us to name it for her neighbor who has been their very close friend "forever." As long as they have been in their home. So. We named it Lou's Wild Grapes for Lou. I was just pleased that it made Dolores happy.

Last year, the grape crop was very bad and this year, Ken thinks the vines are dead. They don't know where they came from in the first place but it will be a shame if they are dead now that we know what to do with the fruit. This is the first true wine that Dick and I have made from scratch. We have made many fermented drinks from various fruits such as rhubarb, plum, current etc. But a true winemaker will say that wine is the fermented product of grapes. This is the only time we have had the opportunity to do so. It is good too. The color is rich and wonderful and as most dark wines is best tasted at room temperature.

Again, I have a desk full of cats. Both Oscar and Roxie are sprawled over much more than their share of the available space.

From the Cadfael Book of Days on the 14th. "A little excitement, after all need not be mischief, and does sound a pleasant counterpoint to the constant order, however much that may be loved and however faithfully served." Ellis Peters


Happy evening.

Mary

A nice peaceful day. I went to bible study this morning. We had a very animated discussion about bringing the readings of the Mass on Sunday into our daily lives. We challenged each other to try to remember something that impresses us in next Sunday's readings and bring it to the study next Monday. This was the third week of the study of the Eucharist and covered the readings, the homily and the petitions.

We are learning a lot. Some of our conversation went to the old customs, such a St. Blaze Day. That was a "feastday" that used to be very popular. It occurs on February 3rd and we used to have our throats blessed with candles. It was supposed to help keep sore throats away. Tom Keyes said that it was an important milestone years back as the farmers knew that there should be "half the hay and half the oats" left at St. Blaze Day.

I read somewhere that we should read Paul's letters as letters - as if they were writted to us instead of the ancient Christian communities. This is a nice idea if one has a knowledge of the world as Paul knew it and can take his words with that in mind. For example, his views on women, though progressive for his age, can really get one's hackles up. It is easier when a person realizes that in Paul's time, women and slaves were pretty much on a par and slavery was an accepted fact of life.

I signed Rosalie, my trap shooting friend, and me up for trap league at Sheboygan Falls Conservation Club. I hop that I remember SOMETHING from last year. We will have to shoot two rounds next week in order to catch up.

Be happy. It is supposed to be nice and warm tomorrow and I am going to plant my Mother's Day dahlias.

Love

Mary

A full but not stressful day. The choir sang at 10:30AM this morning. We did pretty well if I do say so. We sang Mozart's To God Be Joyful and also Rise Up with Him a more modern, bery joyful hymn. Today all the Confirmants were introduced to the community and given their certificates. It is a joyful thing to see all these beautiful healthy young people.

Mother and I were musing over the fact that we do not see any homely or ugly young people anymore. We decided that perhaps we are more forgiving and more appreciative.
More forgiving of any plainness or maybe a bit of chunkiness or big teeth and more appreciative of youth and innocence and just plain people. The nicest part is that we don't expect so much ourselves either.

This afternoon, Bobbie and I worked at Rhine. It was a quiet day but a pleasant one. I shot pistol. Not too successfully but not AWFUL either.

Fixed Venison Creole, fries, stuffed mushrooms and veggie for supper.

It was rather cold and damp today but is supposed to warm up as the week goes on. I hope so. The one or two days we had were like a tease.

Have a nice week

Mary