Thanksgiving is an American Holiday



           Christmas time once again, but let's have Thanksgiving first.  Every year I think of my father say Christmas is so commercialized.  What if he could see it today.  People putting up Christmas trees in their homes, and little kids coming to the door for trick-or-treat.  Wal mart has Christmas and Halloween decorations, side by side.  The corporate world, and black Friday.  What has happen?

           I saw a joke with a turkey telling Santa to get out of here, this was his day, pointing to the calender.  Tradition has been that Thanksgiving is on a Thursday.  Most people get a 4 day weekend, and that is when after stuffing their selves.  They start getting the Christmas stuff out of the attic.  Shoot,  in some traditions the tree doesn't go up till Christmas eve.  How is it that we forget what Thanksgiving is about. 

           Daphne is 9 years old, going to be 10.  When I picked her up the other day, Christmas music was on the radio.  She ask me to change the station.  When I asked her why?  She plainly said it's not even Thanksgiving yet.  Now, this little girl loves to sing.  Her dream in life is to be a singer, yet she knows it is to soon.  We are still eating on her Halloween candy.  When did Christmas stop being for kids, and stories of Reindeer, Elves, and Santa.  When did Christmas become about corporate bottom lines, year end markets and such.  What's more, what happen to stopping everything for one day out of the year to be thankful?



           The leaves haven't stop falling out of the trees yet.  Lets be thankful this year, a lot of people are seeing hard times.  I think the corporate bottom line is doing just fine.  I think the home front needs this Thanksgiving more than ever.  Pilgrims, Plymouth Rock, 1620, Indians, we now call Native Americans.  It is about the food.  It is about, not only the food, but the harvest, the summer coming to an end.  In some places the last chance to go out side with out freezing to death.

           Since it is about the food, a must have is Sausage Balls.  Easy to make, and high blood pressure or not, I love them.  Bisquick, sausage, and cheese.  That's it.  1 lb. of sausage, a package of mild cheddar cheese (12 oz.) and 2 1/2 cups Bisquick.  Mix in a bowl until crumbly, then roll walnut size balls.  Place on an un-greased pan and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.  Pile them high on a plate because I'll be eating them the whole time we are cooking.

           No, I think maybe this year, we need to be thankful more than ever.  More people are out of work, losing their homes, and the cost of every thing just goes up and up.  Maybe as we enjoy family and friends, let's try think about the fact that Thanksgiving is an American thing.  While looking threw "The Box" for  recipes to share with you.  I have come across one of my Grandmothers' it is called a War Cake.  I think of her now reading the ingredients.  

           During WWII, there was rationing.  My Grandmother came up threw the Great Depression.  A lot of her ways, only having chicken on Sunday, or canning jelly's and jams.  I still do some of it with my mother, but for her it was a necessity.  She too has left us.  She lived a long time, and did quite well.  She lived off of some investments, and toward the end lived in a very nice retirement home.  You don't see that much these day.  Back then Banks paid you, to use your money. 

  

           Right now I guess just having a good job, is a lot to be thankful for.  I feel this time now, is the ending of the year.  Not New Years, but Thanksgiving, where the harvest of the year is celebrated.  Like the War Cake, that; it something that should wait for Christmas.  Thanksgiving is turkey, cornbread dressing, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie.  Pecan pie too.  This week we will be cleaning the ceiling fans, getting the house ready for company.  This house will be full of family, with food on their minds. 

           Now for a good Thanksgiving cake we have Fresh Apple w/ Nuts.  Get your mixing bowl out, we are going to put a little flour in our hair and on our nose.  You know it has to look like we are working here.  Blend 1 1/4 cups Mazola (cooking oil), 2 cups of sugar and 3 eggs together.  Then slow mix in 3 cups of plain flour with a teaspoon each of baking soda, salt, and Cinnamon.   With a wooden spoon fold in 1 cup of pecans, a teaspoon vanilla, and 3 cups of chopped up fresh apples.

           Spray your tube-pan with vegetable oil, after you put your wax paper in the bottom.  Fill with the mixture, and put in pre-heated oven, at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Do not open the door! 

           For the topping we are going to melt in a sauce pan 3/4 cup of lite brown sugar with 1/2 cup evaporated milk, and 1/4 cup of margarine.  Pour this all over the top and down the sides.  Sprinkle pecans all over the top.  With the entire house smelling of brown sugar, and apples, every one can't help being thankful.  Thankful to be getting a piece of that cake.

           I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving with family, and friends.  I hope your home is full of the smells, that truly make a wonderful holiday, called Thanksgiving.  As always share with your friends, click on the ads.  May there only be love and joy in your hearts.

              

   

              

Pecan Pie and Sweet Potato Souffle

           Yes it is my job to crack the nuts.  When I was a kid my father would sit in his chair, and crack pecans.  My Dad is no longer with us but I do think of him often.  Things sure have changed since those days.  When my Dad came home, he put on brown pajama pants, his t-shirt, and sat in his chair.  He had a remote control, me.  We had 3 VHF channels, plus 1 UHF channel, 4,7,13, and 21.  The antenna was on a tall pole, I had to go outside and turn by hand.  Rain or shine, even in the snow, I had to go outside and around the other side of the trailer, to turn it.  

           There are a few things about my father I'll never forget.  He loved Banana Cream Pies.  My mother had to make 2 of them when she made them.  One pie was just for him, the 4 of us shared the other one.  I have asked my mother to make one now, and she will not do it.  I do know she made them quite often back then.  At Thanksgiving, and Christmas it was Pecan Pies.  My brother liked pumpkin, but I'm like my father.  It's the Pecan Pie for me, and I crack the nuts now.  

           Something else about my father, he never complained about the grocery bill.  We didn't have a lot, but we had food, and cloths on our backs.  I know I heard stories about walking to school, up hill both ways.  My dad was hard on us, and I got the business end of a belt, often.  I was the oldest and was to know better.  Any way I survived, just like a lot of us.  I do think that today, there are many who could stand a trip to the wood shed.  Some of them are running this country.  

           Today we get pie crust already made in an aluminum pie pan, and just have to make the filling.  You can buy a Pecan Pie already made, but if you need more than one, make it.  You can't have to many pies.  First of all we will blend 3/4 of a cup of brown sugar with a tablespoon of butter.  After that is smooth, add a cup of either dark or lite corn syrup, 3 eggs, and a dash of salt.  Now, put in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, and mix well.  With your wooden spoon stir in 1 cup of chopped pecans.

            Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.  Pour mixture into pie pan of crust, and place in oven for 10 minutes.  Then turn oven down to 350 until pie is set, about 35 minutes.  Glad you made it, then go ahead and make another one.  Now to use some more of the pecans, lets make a Sweet Potato Souffle.  Everybody is going to love you this year.  

           With either 1 can of sweet potatoes, 3 cups of sweet potatoes after cooked.  1 cup of sugar, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of milk, and 1/3 cup butter.  1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon vanilla, mix all of these together with your mixer, till smooth.  Pour ingredients into a casserole dish.  Now for the Topping;  1 cup of brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, and 1/3 cup of butter.  Mix in 1 cup of pecans until crumbly and sprinkle on top.  Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees, then bake 25-30 minutes.  With all the baking for Thanksgiving, you may not have to worry about pre-heating the oven.  The pies and such, and then the turkey.  The oven might not get cooled off for awhile. 

  

           As always please share this and all of my stories with your friends.  If you would, please click the ads, leave comments, and join in as a follower.  Happy Thanksgiving, if you are away from home invite friends over to share in food with you.  God Bless.   

Frogg Leggs

  
          This is a true story, It just might be the reason some have said I was crazy.  This story takes place in Lee County, North Carolina.  Fort Bragg is where I was stationed in the army, and Spring Lake was where I went to school since 5th grade.  My father was in the Air Force, at Pope AFB.  After high school I join the Army there.  These places were in Cumberland County, and everywhere was the military.  Over in the next county was the country.  So when I came home from Germany, and was out of the Army, this is where I lived. 
           Hwy 87 ran from Spring Lake to Sanford, the brick capital of the South.  At least that is what the sign said any way.  Half way between the two was Carolina Springs Golf Course, and a junk yard.  That was about it except for farms, and farmers ponds.  This story is about those ponds.  I have never done any fishing like it since.  Some of the things we did, in hind sight, I would never do again. 
           My best friend Smitty, bought 10 acres on the same dirt road the junk yard was on.  Wooded land means no road in, and lots of trees to cut.  Every weekend I was out at Smitty's cutting trees and drinking beer.  We would have large bon-fires, and work out in the woods till late.  We both knew McLeod up at the junk yard from getting parts.  Smitty knew him all the way back in school.  Smitty was older, he had been in Vietnam.  I had gone in the Army as the war ended. 
           Understanding all of that, we worked every weekend  cutting trees.  McLeod's junk yard was closed on Saturdays at 1o'clock.  They had a backhoe, and road grader that we used cutting in the road.  We worked very hard on this because, Smitty was paying rent where he lived, as well as for the land.  The idea was to get his trailer moved as soon as possible.  Then when we did get the trailer moved in, the work didn't stop.  We just didn't have to work as hard on it.
           This is where the fishing comes in.  We had permission to fish in about 4 or 5 different ponds in the area.  These ponds were a good ways from the farm houses.  The crop they mostly grew in this area was tobacco.  Mid-summer when the tobacco was tall, we would even get into ponds, we didn't have permission.  Sitting out in the middle of two counties, there wasn't any police around for 25 miles in any direction. 
           Sometimes on a Friday night after drinking more than a few beers.  We would load up a 22 rifle, and a crate that bags of milk came in at the mess hall.  The crate had a door on it so the frogs couldn't get out.  We new very little about frogs, or that we were suppose gig them, not shoot them.  I must say learning was the fun part thinking back on it.  We are out in a boat rowing around a pond at 2 am with rifle and a net.  I'm holding the light on frogs, Smitty is shooting them.  I stick the net into the reeds, and water, but getting nothing.  I know he is hitting them but I'm not getting any in the net.
           This goes on quite awhile, until I start getting a few frog's in the net.  The frogs have 3 and 4 bullet holes in their heads and still jumping around.  You can not catch frogs with a gun.  As the sun comes up Saturday morning we just start fishing.  I catch a large mouth bass, and Smitty catches one bigger.  We do this back and forth and it just stops as fast as it started.  We go home with 5 nice bass and let the 3 or 4 frogs with the bullet holes in their heads go. 
           Now, we have invested in a gig and a bamboo pole.  This is also where I get the nick name snake bait.  Some thing about my being in Special Forces, I thought I was Superman or something.  I have had Smitty shoot snakes out between my legs, as I ran out of the marsh.  One time I could not even get the word snake out.  I put the light on the biggest frog ever.  I went down an embankment, on the back side of the lake.  Putting the light on the frog, Smitty behind me.  I get to this frog, and the light moves. 
           The light is shinning on the biggest water moccasin, coiled up and ready to strike this frog I just gigged.  "SSSSnnnnnaakkeee, SSSSSSnnnnnnnnaaakkkeeeeee!"  Don't Shoot!  SSSSSnnnnn Smitty had a shotgun.  We brought a shotgun, not the 22.  I backed slowly backward up the embankment, took the gun from Smitty and shot.  That snake skipped across the lake in dark.  Yes I was scared.  Not as scared as another friend was, who wanted to come see what we called fun.
           Tripp, who I went to high school with was in 82nd Airborne.  We are suppose to be some of the toughest the United States Army has.  Tripp's father was Special Forces, and the reason I joined the Army.  Well, Tripp wanted to go, so we went to this pond where we caught the bass.  Nothing dangerous, it is about midnight, we are rowing around the edges, shinning the light on the bank. We are drinking beers, talking about the different times we've had.  I'm in the back of the boat rowing.  Tripp is in front with light, Smitty in the middle, with the 22.
          Now, a little cove runs along side where the car is parked.  It isn't much bigger than the driveway at your house.  We are starting to enter this cove, as I row under a tree, that is hanging over the water.  I see a snake drop down looking Tripp in eye, at eye level.  I start back paddling as fast as I can.  Smitty is twisting and turning, trying to get the gun free.  Some how Tripp's leg is in the strap of the rifle.  I am frantically backing the boat, and suddenly Tripp is gone.  Tripp is gone, out of the boat and sitting on Smitty's car.
           This is the truth so help me,  the car is 30 feet away from us, with 20 feet of water.  Tripp is sitting on the car cussing us.  He wants to go home, and we are in the boat laughing our asses off.  I row the boat to shore, and Smitty, and I go up to Tripp and feel his pants legs and they are dry.  I don't know if he flew, walked on water, or what but his pants were dry.  Needless to say we went home, and Tripp never went with us again.
           Ever since then when I go to a restaurant, and see frog legs on the menu.  I think back to these times, of plates piled high, with 20 or 30 frog legs, fried golden brown.  No I have never ordered them from a restaurant, and I never plan to go gigging again.  I must say I do get a smile on my face thinking of Tripp sitting on Smitty's car. 
           As always please share with your friends, and click on the ads.  The ads don't cost you anything, and each click helps us.  Deer hunting has nothing on frogs, snakes, and a couple drunks on a farmers pond.

   

          

          

Egg Rolls



           I don't know about you but I love egg rolls and spring rolls.  My high school sweet heart was Japanese.  I must say she was as American as they come.  Her mother was Japan- Japanese.  Her father was Hawaiian- Japanese, a first Sergent in the army.  Talk about a strict parent.  If they got bad grades, it was a boot in the you know what for real.  When I was little my father was stationed in Japan.  Here is a picture of some of my fathers friends back then.



           Now this girl in high school could not speak a word of Japanese, and never dressed like this.  An Issei, is a Japanese person born in Japan.  A Nisei, is a Japanese person outside of Japan.  Now, a person born of these two is third generation Sansei.  Later this girl became my wife and mother of my two girls.  They are Yonsei, and what is neat my daughter studied Japanese in college.  She went to Japan and tought English.  

          A little history there, other that egg rolls, I would not eat their food.  Yes I was stupid, back then, if it didn't look good, I didn't eat it.  I did not even try any of their food.  Now, I wish I had.  One day in her moms kitchen I saw an octopus trying to get out of a boiling pot of water.  No I did not eat any of it, to this day I regret it.  Kemchi, is another thing she made I would not eat.  When they ate it, it was so hot you could smell it on them.  I was 17 and didn't like hot food.  How things have changed.  Kemchi is cabbage fixed like sauerkraut, except very-very HOT.

 

            The cabbage, we are going cut this in shreds, thin to put in the wraps.  As you can see here I lost my job chopping.  There are no onions in this, if there were onions, or peppers, I would be doing the cutting.  We are going to cook this on the stove until tinder. 



          We are only going to cook 1/2 of the cabbage.  Cabbage, is a staple food,  It doesn't cost much and there are many ways to cook it.  As you have seen I'll cook a whole cabbage just to eat with cornbread.  Chow-chow is made with it too.  Enough about that let's put on some shrimp.  These little popcorn shrimp are perfect for this.  Pre-cooked we are going to boil them just long enough to thaw.  Spread a dish towel on the table.  We will put the cabbage and shrimp on it the dry some.



          Strain off your cabbage, and shrimp and place on towel.



          This is the hard part for me, do not eat any shrimp  they are for the egg rolls.  OK what is the difference in egg rolls, and spring rolls?  No, one doesn't have an egg and the other does.  Spring rolls don't have meat, and egg rolls do.  One thing is missing here, bean sprouts.  O-well the grocery store didn't have them.  The wraps can be found where you get the fresh cabbage in the store.  Lay out some wax paper on your table to work on.  Take one egg and scramble well in a bowl.  You will paint egg on wrap to seal it closed.



           This is not rocket science, you can do this.  Every thing I show you, I use pictures to help you along.  My favorite egg rolls are with sausage and some green peppers.  You can use chicken, or pork too.  All of these with meat in them are egg rolls.  Ever how you do it is fine.



A little cabbage, a little shrimp.

          We are moving a little fast here.  Take your time and try not to tear the wraps by putting to much in them.  Now all you have to do is heat up the Fry Daddy, Fry Baby, but you don't have one.  Not a problem,  fill a deep cooking pot with vegetable oil and heat it up for frying.  If you do use a pot save your oil.  The way I check oil to see if it is hot enough, is a drip of water.  Be careful doing it this way, the oil will pop out on you.

          We are going to have fried rice with our egg rolls.  You need day old rice, we had to make some rice.  I didn't know Mom had a 3X5 card for fried rice, I always just make it with what I have.  Mine always has green peppers and onions.  We are doing this by the card.  1/2 cup of shrimp chopped fine, but you can use ham, chicken, or pork. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. 3 oz can of mushrooms or fresh if you have them.  4 cups of rice, 1 chopped onion and after all this is stirred well, add 1 egg and continue stirring until cooked well. 

           Some thing else that goes real good is stir-fry.  Today you can get the stir-fry vegetables in the frozen foods.  A must have is a can of water chest nuts.  I love water chest nuts, I could eat a whole can.  Bamboo shoots too.  When you start adding those, the price goes up. 



          We are on a budget, so it is just the fried-rice.  We do have a pile of egg rolls to go with it.



           Once again this is enough food for two nights.  I hope you enjoy the food.  I try to show just how easy, and fun cooking can be.  Cooking like this does not cost that much,  you feed a family, and smiles are free.  Share this with your friends, and click on the ads to support the Blog.  Become a follower and read all the blog's at Charles Kenneth's Corner. 

 

          

Chocolate Pound Cake, "Occupy That"



           Chocolate, Who doesn't love Chocolate.  Chocolate is a word that should always be capitalized.  As a matter of fact, Chocolate should be written in bold letters.  If you are in trouble with your wife, Chocolate.  Girl friends is letting the answer machine take her calls, Chocolate.  If they are both made at you, lots of Chocolate.  If you want to make every one in your home, happy.  Here is some serious bowl licking.  

          Pound cake is one of my favorite.  It is not real sweet, yet it satisfies the sweet tooth.  A chocolate cake is even better.  Why it has not hit the Blog yet I don't know, but here it is.  As always put your margarine sticks in your mixing bowl, and let sit while you get every thing ready.  This is one of the times a little flour on your face is not necessary, this is going to take some time to make.  The flour on the face is possible though.  Today's flour doesn't need sifting, but that lets you know this recipe is old.  It comes out of "The Box".

   

          We have our bowl out and put 3 cups of Flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 cup of cocoa.

          After stirring well with you wooden spoon, we get our bowl with the margarine.  We are going to keep these 2 bowls separate.  Setting the one with the flour to the side, out of the way.  We put the one with the margarine in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds, or soft not melted.   If you set it out early you don't have to nuke it.  To this bowl put in 3 cups of sugar, and measure out Crisco. 



          We measure out 1 cup of Crisco, and mix with mixer until fluffy.  Get out another bowl, and 5 eggs.  this small bowl is to crack your eggs in one at a time.  I'm not sure the reason why, except when you got eggs on the farm, they some times had blood in them.  Plus it makes mixing easier.  Put in 2 teaspoons vanilla.



 



           Here is where it gets fun.  Crack one egg at a time crack into small bowl.  Put 1 cup of milk in measuring cup, and your bowl of flour, and cocoa mixture, all ready.  We are going to add 1 egg, a little mixture, and a little milk and mix well.  We are going to do this with all 5 eggs, one at a time.  A little milk, a little flour, cocoa mix. 



Are you Love-in-This



         This next part, get out the cake pan with a hole in it.  Now when I was young we bought groceries and brought them home in brown paper bags.  Grandma would cut out the circle, with brown paper.  We will use wax paper.  This is so the cake will come out of the pan. 



          Now I folded my wax paper twice, and cut a 1/2 circle out of the corner to make the opening.  This does not have to be perfect.  Spray the inside with vegetable oil, and now I have made this cake as easy as I can, with pictures.  The most important part is coming up.  Who gets to lick the bowl?



          Pre-heat you oven to 325 degrees.  Not 350, most of the cooking we do is at 350, do not make this mistake that we did.  The cake turned out good, and still moist.  Just to let you know we make mistakes too.  It turns out fine.  A matter of fact, one of the best cakes my mother ever made, fail.  Us kids playing and all.  When the cake goes in the oven, no jumping up and down, or slamming doors.  The cake will fall.  Do not peak or open door to oven for 1 hour.  Cooking time is 1 1/2 hour stick in tooth pick to check if done. 



          Peel the wax paper off, and let cool.  Put on some coffee, or pour a glass of milk.  After about 15 minutes or so have a slice of heaven while it is still warm.  Chocolate Pound Cake now your new favorite.

       I will leave you with one last picture.  Please as always share this with a friend, cake taste better when you share it.  Share this Blog with as many as you can too, and click on a few ads.  Become a follower of Charles Kenneth's Corner,  and collect recipes to put in your "The Box".  Thank-you every one.

  

            

Walking the Walking Stick



           I don't know if you can hear the music, but I can hear it all over the back yard.  Mostly Country, but it varies from time to time.  This is the work shop, tool shed, catch all studio.  Whether fixing the weed eater, tiller, or like today making a walking stick.  With the weather here I'm able to work outside threw Christmas.  If it does get cold I just make a fire.  The little one likes the fires because she can make "Smores".  I always keep a chocolate bar around just for that.  With that I guess you are wondering what we are cooking.  Well, get a pot out we are cooking "Great Northern Beans".  

           Now, if you are new.  Go back to the story about fried green tomatoes, it will tell you all about making your cornbread.  The rest of you loyal followers lets go out side, the leaves are changing.

 

           That tree is changing every day, I don't have to ride to the mountains.  The fall is all around.  I raked up 8 bags of leaves the other day and put them around the Azalea's in front.  Now, I hope you didn't need help with dried beans.  If you did, fill pot with water, add a little salt, and add beans.  The salt helps the water to boil, that might be a wives tale, but I do it any way.  I love beans and cornbread.  Ant no Jiffy in this house.  A lot of people like sweet cornbread, and if you do, just add a little sugar to my recipe.  

  

           These trees are seen from the front porch.  In talking with friends on the Internet, they already have snow sharks.  What are snow sharks?  Well that is when you are sitting on the porch, or looking out the window, and theirs one, theirs another one.  Not really snowing yet, just a flake here, and a flake there.  Around here it can do that all morning and not snow.  Those are "Snow Sharks".  Let's go find a good "walking stick", stick.

 

           This one is Oak, I make a lot from cedar.  Oak is a hard wood.  Cedar is a hard wood too, but easier to carve.  Oak is what they make baseball bats of.  I make my own ax handles from oak.  What you going to carve on it? Uncle Chuck, what you going to carve on it?  Well the wood has to talk to me.  I have no idea, I just start chopping with a machete, and using a rasp to shape it.  

  

           What you say I tell you a story.  This is a true story.  I have been making walking sticks for a long time now.  Even made the local news paper.  They came out to my house to do an article about my paintings of the passion of Christ done in a sculptured style on canvas.  It was Easter time, they thought it was a good feature story, till .......... The photographer and reporter started asking about the walking sticks.  For my second 15 sec. of fame.  I had been in a news paper in North Carolina for the paintings and now at home for my walking sticks.

           In the land where the stories of our Bible come from,  the people watch after sheep.  This story goes way back, back past Jesus.  Past Moses, even Elijah may have had his, when he was carried up to heaven.  Their staff.  The staff was their testimony to God.  The testimony of all the events in their lives good and bad.  You see there were no books like we have today.  The writing of that time was marks on clay tablets. 

  

           Shepherds would have a long staff with a hook, to grab a little one to keep it on path with the rest.  It was strong to lean on on the long journeys to find grass.  At night while it was quite he would take out his knife and carve the birth of a child.  On his walking stick, he might carve the marriage, or death of a loved one.  The testimony of his life was always with him.  If he run across wild dogs, or robbers, it was his weapon.  Then at the end of his life and he stood before his maker.  He would hold his "Staff" or his "Walking Stick" high in the sky above his head and shout "This is my TESTIMONY to God of my Life"

           This stick is starting to take shape.  With a few curves here and there to give it, it's own personality.  As you can see at top there, which is the bottom of the walking stick it is still rough.  The rasp shapes it.  I don't use any power tools to do this.  I like it this way, I feel like I give a piece of myself to the wood and it gives piece of it back to me.  Each one is different.

 

  

 

            These are just a few, the last one there I gave my sister.  She just had a hip replacement.  From what I've heard about the surgery she won't need to use it much.  Well, I've got this one with some stain on it, and as time goes by I'll carve on it. What it will be, I don't know yet.  Some one might just ask to have it so they can carve it, who knows.  One of these days, we all have to stand with a testimony.

           If you would, please share this, and the other stories with your friends.  Click on an ad or two, they won't cost you anything and they generate a small income for me and my stories.  Leave comments, XXOO's and thank-you.