RIP: Howard D. Olsaver, 1939-2011

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Our friend Howard died on April 11, 2011 at the age of 72.  His memorial service was held at the American Legion Post 45 in La Pine, Oregon last Sunday, May 1.

Born in Vermont in 1939, Howard married young and has a daughter named Laurie.  Leading a colorful life, Howard and his wife divorced and Howard lost touch with his family.  Eventually, he made his way to the West Coast and ended up moving to La Pine.  There, he met his wife Jodie and her two children, Becky and Brett.  They were married for around ten years, before Jodie died of lung cancer.

Cary had known Howard for years, and Howard worked for La Pine Redi Mix way back when, and then more recently as our security guy and "Office Manager".  Howard was a good friend to us, and he also was known around our house as "Uncle Howard", as he house sat for us and watched the dogs when we were gone.  By trade, Howard was a plumber, maintenance man and also did excavation work.

Over the past year, Howard's health declined and he developed lung cancer in addition to his COPD.  He moved to the Prairie House assisted living complex in La Pine.  Howard was a member of the American Legion and drove their van for them, and also helped by answering the phone when he was there.

Howard's memorial service was well attended. We are all going to miss you, Howard.  I have posted a few pictures of his family here, but please check out the slide show for many more.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The pictures that Becky and I pulled together.  We are sending some of them to Howard's sister in Vermont.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Becky and her sweet family.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Cary visits with Jodie's brother Bob, and his wife Joyce.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This is Mike, his friend who drove 

Howard to his radiation treatments.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

My best friend husband Cary and me.

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Bargain Book Bonanza #9 , Chubby Mommy Runs The Eugene Marathon, and Easy Taco Salad:

Welcome, peeps!  This is three posts in one, so to leave a comment, please scroll all the way down to the bottom of it.  Thanks so much for stopping by to visit, I appreciate it very much!

Another Trip to St. Vinnies

Last week I was running my errands in downtown Mayberry.  One of those errands was to donate my paper grocery bags to St. Vincent de Paul.  

I don't like plastic bags, so when I am getting my groceries, I ask for paper.  I never have figured out how plastic bags are supposed to be better for the environment.  You can re-grow trees, and there is no reason why old growth needs to be made into paper bags, so the plastic peeps argument never convinced me.  I know, bringing your own good reusable canvas bags to the store is the best option, but I usually fill those up with things at home or forget to bring them with me.

So, I recycle my paper sacks to St. Vinnies, because as we all know -- books don't do well with thin plastic bags.  They are getting used to me coming in there now, and I hope to set an example.  The funny thing is that Oregon is going to now ban plastic, so maybe more people will soon be donating paper bags all over the place.  Oh, I love being a trendsetter!  I also think that I'll start sewing and selling cloth bags to sell in my little store.  What do you think?

Well, I got inside the store, gave to the needy and decided that I couldn't help it and walked straight over to the used book section.
Take a look at my haul:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I got a Stephen King to add to my collection, a Star Wars book to give to my son, and a copy of Forrest Gump (I've only seen the movie 100 times but I didn't even know that there was a book).  The book that I am most excited about is the blue one, Case Histories.  It looks really good.  I might read it next.  Right now I am reading Maeve Binchy's Heart and Soul.  It is really good.  I was ready for a light reading type of book after Beloved.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I spent $6.00 that day, and the lady punched my card and combined the two that I had.  That gave me one full card for next time and a $5.00 punch on my new one.  Yay!  This really is a good deal, because a full card is worth $10.00 off the next time that I come in to shop.  If I come in on 1/2 off day, I will really get a good deal ... $20.00 worth of stuff for free.  I'm very happy about that.

This is a Bargain Book Bonanza post.  To read about others great finds, please CLICK HERE to go over to Mrs. Greenawalt's Cozy Book Nook to take a look!

JulieJulie Runs Her Very First Marathon!

Chubby Mommy Running Club ~ Julie Anderson

Do you remember my sister, Julie Julie over at the Chubby Mommy Running Club?  If not, she is the one in the orange.  Julie Julie loves orange.  She also loves staying fit.  Yesterday, she ran her first 13.5 mile, 1/2 marathon with, 10,000 others in Eugene, Oregon.  She came in 3056th place, also received a medal!  Yay for you, Aunt Julie!  (That is what I've been calling her for the past 30 years, since my firstborn was born.)

To read more about her adventures, please check out her websites.  She's a great writer and is lots of fun.  Julie is starting Chubby Mommy Running Clubs up all over the world, and that is very exciting. Maybe you can start up a chapter where you live ... just ask her how!  Here is her main blog Chubby Mommy Running Club, and here is her business website: Twist Pop Media.  This is the post about the night before the marathon: Chubby Mommy Running Club: Running the Half Marathon.  I'm sure that she will be writing a story about the event itself very soon.

I'm awful proud of you, Little Sister!

Easy Taco Salad

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This is super easy to make and it tastes great.  My taco salad is quite a crowd-pleaser, but it isn't thrifty, unless you can get everything on sale.  It is probably super high in fat and calories, but you can make your own adjustments for that.  This is how I make it:

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

You also need a can of olives, sliced.  And an onion chopped up and cooked with the hamburger.  I forgot to take an action shot of chopping up the onion.  That is two sacks of salad, by the way (or one big one).  Oh, you also need a couple of tomatoes. 

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Brown 2 pounds of lean hamburger and the onion.  When it is brown, drain off the fat and add the packet of taco seasoning and mix well.  Don't follow the recipe on the back of the package.  If you need to add a teeny bit of water, that is okay though.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I usually mix this part all up in my big spaghetti pot, but it was dirty.  So I grabbed two big bowls and made two separate batches ... one to eat now and one for later.  (I didn't add the salad dressing to the one for later, that makes it really soggy.  Good, but soggy.)

Pour a bunch of tortilla chips into the bottom of your bowl.  Take a cup or small glass and crush them down into little pieces.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Add your seasoned hamburger and onion mix to your chips and stir well.  I'm switching to the green bowl now, for better pictures.  I always strive for beauty in the tiniest places.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Grate up a bunch of cheese and mix it in well with the other stuff.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Add your salad and combine everything.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

For this size of bowl, add 1/2 bottle of Catalina dressing.  There is also a sweet and spicy option, if you can find it.  If I had my clean spaghetti pot, I would have put everything in there, including the whole bottle of dressing.  Then, for serving, I would have transferred everything to a pretty bowl. 

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Top with sour cream, guacamole or fresh avocados, olives and more chips.  This part of the post seems to be a "do what I say, not as I do"!  I really wasn't in the mood to cook that day, but did it for my Cary.  I figured that while I was at it, I'd might as well take pictures of my project.

I put the rest in a gallon Zip Lock freezer bag, and we are eating it when we get the urge ... just adding a bit of dressing as we go!
Enjoy!


Kathy

If you miss a day, you miss a lot!  Don't miss out on the news ... Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.

April's A - Z Challenge: Reflections of the Challenge

I’m excited because I have successfully completed April's A-Z Challenge!  The challenge was to post daily, Monday through Saturday, and to follow the alphabet along the way.  Those of you who know me, know that I usually post once or twice a day on a regular basis, so it wasn’t a big surprise that I would complete what I started out to do on this one.  Still, I do feel a feeling of accomplishment.  I am so glad that I spotted the Challenge on my friend Lisa's blog, Writing In The Buff, a couple of days before it began.

By the end of tomorrow, I will hopefully hit post number 1300 since I began this blog in November 2008.  I did write many new posts during the past month, but I also recycled some of my older, favorite posts too.  It was good to go back, view my old work, and show it to you new readers.  Thank to you my regular, daily readers who had to wade through a few reruns brought to you by the letter of the day.  I hope you didn’t get bored!  I discovered old photos and put them to new use too.  

I am thrilled with my newest readers, and with finding lots of great blogs that I would not have ever known about without A-Z.  I have gained 25 new followers this month, which is a miracle, because I only had 64 when I started the challenge. Thanks, everybody!  If you want to read each post, I have them listed in alphabetical order on the top of my sidebar.   

I tried to visit ten new blogs each day, and I visited and replied to everybody who commented on my posts.  That is my normal practice anyway, at this point.  I didn't keep track of how many new people that I am following, but it is probably around 30 or so.  

There are some fantastic blogs out there, you guys!  Many people made their posts easy, and some made their posts really intensive.  All those interviews that Dierdra over at A Storybook World did!  So much work went into each of those, and she also gave many of us her originally illustrated awards, thank you very much!  I appreciate everybody who worked so hard to meet this challenge.  I loved seeing what my "already friends" would come up with each day.  If I start listing names, I'm sure to leave somebody out, so I won't try to do that tonight. 

I found the whole challenge a very pleasant experience.  I want to thank Arlee and the rest of the hosts who spent all month on the technicalities and facilitation.  That was a lot of work and commitment for each of you. Here is their list of names and blog names:

Jeffrey Beesler's
  World of the Scribe 

 
Alex J. Cavanaugh 
 Alex J. Cavanaugh 

 
Jen Daiker's 
 Unedited 

 
Candace Ganger's
  The Misadventures in Candyland 

 
Karen J Gowen at
 Coming Down the Mountain 

 
Talli Roland 

 
Stephen Tremp's
  Breakthrough Blogs

There is now an optional follow-up discussion group that challenge participates can participate in.  I have decided to go ahead and do this so that I can get to know the others better. 

Kathy

The A - Z Challenge is now all done! It was hosted by  Arlee Bird's: Tossing It Out and several others.  Several of my blogging friends participated, and this year there are over 1,200 participants. We posted everyday, except for Sundays, and worked our way through the alphabet. When you are all done here at Oregon Gifts,  please click here to visit the other bloggers who participated in this challenge.

If you miss a day, you miss a lot!  Don't miss out on the news ... Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.

A Whirlwind of a Softball Game in La Pine Oregon:

Yesterday was a beautiful day.  I drove to our local park on Finley Butte Road in La Pine to watch Little Missy's softball game.  I got there early and was amazed at how much the park had changed over the past year or so.  I have pictures of the park itself, but because this post is already so long, I will do a separate one on it sometime later.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Meet Tatum, aka: Little Missy.  She is my BFF April's daughter.  This is her first season of playing ball, and she is doing great at it.  Tatum is a natural; it is in her genes.  Her Grandpa Galbraith was a pro-baseball player, back in the day.  Little Missy was happy that I came to watch her play.  So was I.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Tatum is warming up, throwing the ball to her best friend Sage.  Sage and Tatum are the only girls on the team. 

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Don't you just love their pink gloves and sporting shoes with the pink stripes?  Too cute!  Tatum is #9 and Sage is #8.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Here is Sage, ready to go.  I used my "Action Sports Shooting" setting on my camera all the way through the game and the mini-tornado.  I love that setting.  My camera doesn't have to stop to focus and I get some neat shots.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Tatum played third base for awhile.  She had lots of action coming her way.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I was sitting with these handsome folks.  Tanner, Brandon, Ryland and April.   

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Tanner

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Ryland, Tanner and Brandon.  Tanner looks just like his Daddy to me.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Ryland is just plain sweet.  He loves people.  Ryland was gently poking the lady in front of him just to get her attention so that he could say hi and wave.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Ryland looks just like his Grandpa Duke, our friend who died a couple of years ago.  He also looks so much like his aunt Mallory.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Look how that little hand is holding on to his Dad's finger.  Precious.

Okay, so we were all sitting there, minding our own business, congratulating ourselves on only getting snow, but, thank God no tornadoes.  Somebody said, here comes the wind, and before we knew it we were ducking for cover and shielding our eyes from dust and small objects.

I looked up and thought, oh my gosh, I should be taking pictures of this.  By the time I got organized, it was starting to go away.  It was worse than it looks here; the wind was probably 60 mph, but I don't know that for sure.  It blew the helmets off the kids and had them spiraling up into the air in a dust devil wind tunnel. 

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This is when it was leaving the field.  The dust devil spent several seconds in the middle of the field.  It blew the tissues out of a ladies purse and sucked them into the mesh fence.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Not knowing any better, that one little boy was chasing it away.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Enlarge this picture and see if it gives you the creeps.  At the very least, see how that white cloud looks as if it is sucking up the brown dust devil?  I know, me and my nature faces!

Play continued.  It was so fun to watch all those little kids learning play ball.  It was coach pitch, unless they were too unskilled and needed a tee.  One catcher kept getting foul balls dropped at his feet, and he'd just stand there, not even picking them up.  They were taught to throw to first, so even if they could have walked four feet to home plate to get a runner out, they would throw to first, the first baseman wouldn't catch it, and another runner would make it home.  Way cute.


Cary and I love to watch baseball on t.v., and I kept thinking about how those pros started like these little kids.  They had to think about throwing and carefully prepare ... it takes years of practice to get the naturalness that you see later on.  Some of those little kids are really good though.  They can hit, throw and run.   


It was so fun to enjoy the day with April and also meeting Sage's Mom, Lynette.  The weather action just made it even more interesting.


Thanks for stopping by and reading this long post!  I hope that you enjoy your Sunday.  God bless.


~ Kathy

If you miss a day, you miss a lot!  Don't miss out on the news ... Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.