Easter Sunday

We had a quiet Easter this year. We stayed home and shared a delicious meal of ginger-marmalade ham (done in the crock pot), home-made gluten-free French bread, Hasselbeck potatoes, and chocolate truffle brownies. We were all grateful to be able to spend a peaceful day at home, especially after the busy week we'd just had. 

antique Easter image

As usual, it snowed on Easter Sunday, preventing us from playing outside or hiding eggs. Clementine has yet to see a snow-free Easter in her five years. This year, we planned ahead and are going to recreate Easter festivities with Dan's family this coming weekend. The weather is supposed to be overcast, but will hopefully cooperate and be snow-free so that we can hide eggs and celebrate with Spring-like temperatures. Either way, we're looking forward to spending time with Dan's parents, his sister, her husband, and Clementine's cousins.

 antique image

I decided a few months ago to make the toys for Clementine's Easter basket this year, but it took me till late last week to decide what to make, and I then spent most of last Saturday sewing. I managed to finish a pony and some bunnies. Nothing like waiting till the last moment, you know?

antique image

Dan did the cooking on Sunday, allowing me to finish the embroidery on the pony's saddle and bridle. I am so thankful to be married to a thoughtful, sweet husband who always encourages me to be creative. Dan is an excellent cook and did  a fantastic job with everything. The only thing I did this year was grocery shop, plan the menu, and enjoy a delicious dinner.

Clementine's Easter pony

Part of the reason it took me so long to start is that I decided to make the pattern for the pony from scratch. I've made simple toy patterns before, but this was most complicated by far. Made from wool felt, the pony is hand sewn, has several gussets, lined ears, and though you can't see them in the photos, cute little hooves. The saddle and bridle are brown wool felt, embroidered with daisies and French knot flowers in several colors of floss.

 Easter pony with carrots

The pale orange carrots are long triangles with green felt fringe at the top - I don't use a pattern for small items like these and so each carrot is slightly different. I left the threads from the floss about an inch long at the end of each carrot to represent the rootlets at the ends of real carrots.

 bunnies bunnies bunnies!

The bunnies are from a pattern I've had for several years, not my own - I'm not sure where it originated, but it became separated from the directions at some point, and I have a feeling that I placed one of the gussets incorrectly. I think now that it should have gone in the head, not along the back. If I make them again, I'll definitely try placing the gusset in the head and seeing if that makes any difference. The green bunny is the only one made with acrylic felt. I used acrylic to test the pattern since I didn't have any directions and didn't want to waste wool if I got it wrong. Which I probably did anyway.

Clementine loves them though, which is all that really matters.

the bunnies and their carrots

I found several yards of wool felt at the thrift store a while back, and as soon as I saw it, I knew that I'd be making toys with it. Clementine always responds well to toys made from wool - it holds the warmth from little hands and feels so nice and soft.

flowers on the saddle

Since she received the pony and bunnies, Clementine has played with them non-stop. There is something special about home-made that resonates with children and I've been asked to make several more ponies for her stable. I guess I'd better get busy.

the pony, the bunnies, and their carrots

the pony and her carrots

I hope you had a blessed, joyful Easter.

Namaste.

Happy New Year 2011

I'm not sure why, but I find myself looking forward to 2011 with uncharacteristic (for me, anyway) optimism.

vintage ephemera

2010 was overwhelmingly good:

• Our oldest graduated from college. She worked so hard, did so well, and is now plotting her course through graduate school as she holds down a job, and is adjusting to her first home-away-from home. So much for one year, but she has handled it with poise and aplomb. My heart swells with pride when I think of the beautiful young woman she's become.
• Our middle daughter also had a year of many changes. She was accepted into her first choice of universities; she turned 18, and from my perspective, she grew up. Suddenly, my baby is so incredibly mature, introspective, and graceful. She's always been my sunniest child - beautiful, cheerful and pleasant; but now there is something else - she's on the cusp of being a "grown up". My sweetest child is fledging and I could not be prouder of everything she's become. 
• Clementine turned five. In addition to becoming much more self-sufficient, she started preschool, had her tonsils out after a very long illness, grew 5 inches, had her long hair cut into a cute pixie cut, advanced several levels in swim class, and started ballet lessons (which she loves). 
• Dan had a busy, productive year. He took three week-long trips for work (New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts). He spent a week in VMWare training (VM = Virtual Machine), which he really enjoyed, and he'll be taking the exam to be certified in VMWare after the first of the year. Dan went elk and antelope hunting, and brought home a very nice antelope which now graces our freezer.He worked on various projects around the house, spent more time at the gym, and spent a lot of time doing "daddy stuff".
• As for me... I've had a busy year as well; being a wife and a mother is a full-time job.
  I've done some writing (but not nearly enough), and some crafting (not nearly enough). I did a fair bit of knitting (but not nearly enough), and even got around to making Clementine's Halloween costume by hand... which I hope to get around to posting here soon.
  I did some de-cluttering, but got seriously sidetracked when Clementine was so sick (from November 2009 through May, 2010).
  I had surgery at the beginning of December, which was a long time coming, and am starting to feel better.
  
  
  
  vintage ephemera

My resolutions for 2011 are: 

• To be a better wife. I've been consciously working on this during the past year and I hope I've made progress. My husband is the sweetest, kindest, best man in the world and he deserves someone who appreciates him and helps him in every way possible. I strive to be yet more helpful, more supportive, and more appreciative in the new year.
  
• To be a better mom. I need to remind myself to make time for the most important things in life - spending time with my beloved three daughters. They fill my heart with indescribable joy. 
• To be a better home maker. I'd like to make more of our food from scratch, and sew more. Last year I decluttered my kitchen, learned to make yogurt, and started baking from scratch again, this time using gluten-free recipes. I'd like to bake more, and make more of the things and products we use. 
• I'd like to continue to make our home greener, both because it's healthier and because it almost always costs less. Last year I purged the kitchen of nearly every piece of plastic and replaced them with china and Pyrex/Fire King from thrift stores (safer and cheaper than the plastic was when it was new). Glass never melts, doesn't off-gas, and looks so much prettier than plastic.
  This year, I'd like to focus on greener cleaning supplies and to continue buying organic where it matters (The Organic Dirty Dozen - foods which should always be purchased in organic form^) 
• To watch many more awful B-movies with my husband. We cancelled cable last spring, and while the amount of TV viewing in our home went way down overall, we soon began to seek out and watch old B-movies together. But instead of sitting there passively watching TV, we found ourselves talking, laughing, and enjoying ourselves. Movie Night is the highlight of my week now.
• I'd like to work more in clay, knit more often, and craft more. I did pretty well last year, making time for several small projects, but could certainly do more. One of my goals this year is to make as many of the gifts we give during the year as possible.
• I'd like to exercise more, including getting out and hiking. It's a shame to live amongst all this beauty and not spend more time in nature. 
• Immediately return to our 10-a-day decluttering plan, starting January 1st (today!). It works like this: Pick 10 things - however you wish to define "things" - 10 magazines, 10 forks, ten pieces of paper. Ten of one thing  or ten different things. Then, take those ten things, whatever they are, and get rid of them. Give them away, recycle them, thrown them out, donate them, shred them, whatever. Easy, right? Just do ten a day, every day.
• Read more. I don't read enough. Actually, I read a lot, but most of what I read isn't in book form. So, I'd like to focus on reading more books. 
• Recommit to The Compact Movement. The Compact Movement is dedicated to buying less through agreeing to buying new only what you absolutely need (food, medicine, school books, etc.), and trying not to buy anything else for a year (or for whatever period you commit to).
• To appreciate everything I have. Not things, but people and relationships. I'm blessed with loving friends and family, but I don't express how much I love and care for all of these wonderful people as much as I should.

vintage ephemera

With that in mind, I would like to wish you the Happiest of Happy New Years, and thank you so much for reading.

vintage postcard from 1927
Welcome, 2011
The Year of the Rabbit

Namasté

I Am Thankful For...

I am thankful for

... being in a beautiful world with so many wonderful people

... darling, beautiful, gifted, funny, accomplished talented daughters

... a brilliant, handsome, funny talented loving husband

... amazing, loving, smart, funny family and friends 

... my sweet kitty who cuddles and sleeps with me at night 

... my big goofy dog, so protective and loyal

... my health and the good health of my beloved family

... my warm, cozy, (often messy) home

... my community and town, full of good people

... all of the natural wonders surrounding us, living in Colorado

... living in the United States, with our blessings and freedoms

... the men and women who selflessly sacrifice to maintain those freedoms

 Thanksgiving Dinner 2010 consisted of: 

Roast Turkey with garlic-peppered skin

Homemade Montina Bread Stuffing with raisins and pecans (Montina is a type of wild grass used in gluten-free cooking)

Homemade Sourdough Rolls (gluten-free)

Glazed Sweet Potatoes with toasted coconut, cardamom, and pecans

Cranberry Relish

with  

Pumpkin Custard seasoned with Indian spices for dessert

Namaste

Thank you

A heartfelt thank you to veterans everywhere.
Thank you for bravely protecting us and our great nation.
Thank you for your sacrifices. 
Thank you for everything you've done to preserve our freedoms.
You are in our thoughts and prayers.

In Flanders Fields

by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie,

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

 used with permission, attributed to Palmiped at en.wikipedia

Namaste.

The Friday Five from The Women's Colony...

...coming to you live, on Saturday morning. 

We had a pretty quiet week after a bustling, super-busy Halloween weekend. As soon as I'm feeling a bit better, I'll post photos of the costume I made for Clementine. It took much longer than normal to make, the better part of a week, mostly because I felt so icky. October 31st is Clementine's birthday as well as Halloween, and this was the first year we've let her go to more than just the two or three houses in our immediate neighborhood. For the first time, we allowed her (with Dan as her brave escort, of course) to trick or treat at a few dozen houses. For all those reasons, I really wanted to make her costume special.

Used with permission, by seiyastock, from Morguefile^

I've been sick for about a month, with coughing, a sinus infection, an earache; just feeling terrible. I've gone to bed early most nights, exhausted. I ended up going in to the doctor on Thursday morning after I just couldn't justify trying to say that "it'll get better" when it wasn't. Turns out, it's a sinus/bronchial infection. I'm now on antibiotics, and feel some better already. I need to remind myself that when I'm sick, the doctor is my friend.

 Used with permission, by ppdigital, from Morguefile^

Tonight, after dinner, Dan and I watched a movie on Netflix streaming. In the last few months, we've developed a habit of watching bad sci-fi/monster movies on Friday night. Tonight's feature film was Snake Island^, starring William Katt ( the actor from the awesome 1981 series, Greatest American Hero). People stranded on island full of snakes, snakes pick people off one by one. In the end, only the few people who seemed to be decent folk are left. It was pretty much ok as those things go, unless you're ophidiophobic (hate snakes). 'Cause this movie had snakes. Lots and lots of snakes. And lots and lots of bad acting. Sssssss.

Used with permission, by penywise from Morguefile^

Luckily, neither of us fear snakes. I fear clowns (coulrophobia), so I avoid circuses, and try to live a life that doesn't include day-to-day contact with brightly painted creepy people :)

 Used with permission, by mconnors from Morguefile^

Giant from the Unknown^ was our second movie of the evening. Filmed in 1958, in black and white,, it was about an archaeologist father and his daughter who were looking for the bodies of a evil giant who had been part of a Spanish conquistador expedition into California in the 1600's. They're joined by another man, I think he was a scientist of some sort. They eventually dig up the skeleton of the giant, who is then promptly reanimated by a lightening bolt. The giant rants and raves, kills a couple of people, and generally terrorizes the tiny mountain town until they kill it. It was about what you'd expect, i.e., I loved it. 

 Used with permission, by ladyheart from Morguefile^

Mostly, I love it because it gives us a chance to sit together, chat, and just "be" with each other. It's nice to have a weekly date to spend special time with my love. I can't wait until next week.


Without further adieu, the Friday Five from the Women's Colony^:

Used with permission, by alvimann, from Morguefile^

1. Are you a morning or a night person?

Night person. But I bet you guessed that, since I'm writing this at 3:49 AM. Actually, this is late even for me. I wouldn't be up now normally, but I feel better sitting up than laying down.

Used with permission, by wax115, from Morguefile^

2. You’re having dinner with friends. They all start gossiping about another friend of yours. What do you do?

Ask them to stop, possibly correcting anything said that I know to be wrong.

Used with permission, by clarita, from Morguefile^

3. What is the worst job you've ever had?

I don't know. I don't think I've ever really hated a job insofar as my bosses have been nice enough and most co-workers have been fine. I guess I'd have to say "waitressing" because people in general don't really treat waitresses very well. If you feel the need to cure yourself of your love for Humanity, wait tables for six months or so. It'll fix you right up. 

Used with permission, by duboix, from Morguefile^

4. What magazines do you subscribe to? 

Only one, Living Crafts^, a crafting magazine featuring natural handcrafts. I used to subscribe to Reason^, a magazine for libertarians; &; Skeptical Inquirer^, a science magazine for skeptics. I stopped a few years ago when the subscriptions ran out, but I'd like to resubscribe to both someday when I have more time to read them. 

 Used with permission, by Alvimann, from Morguefile^

5. What is your favorite restaurant in your area?

Eating out when you don't eat gluten is really hard, and I'm always concerned that I'm going to get "wheated". A couple of restaurants stand out as places that are easier than most. Thankfully, they're delicious, too. Arharn Thai^ has a really well-labeled menu, is very careful about gluten, and hands-down, has the best Thai in town.

 used with permission, by dantada, from Morguefile^

My other favorite place is Bird Dog BBQ^; they have some of the best BBQ I've ever had (and I lived in the South), and are very mindful of gluten.

Either place, any time.

Until later.

Namaste

(Nearly) Wordless Wednesday

Last night, coming home from dinner, we saw...

From Cinco de Mayo Moon

From Cinco de Mayo Moon

From Cinco de Mayo Moon

From Cinco de Mayo Moon

Namaste

=^..^=

5, 4, 3, 2, 1... Happy New Year!

Tonight, as the audio-animatronic Dick Clark and the even less realistic semi- humanoid Ryan Seacrest ring in the New Year in Times Square, we'll be ringing in the New Year the way we usually do: dinner in, a movie in the player or a game, then cuddling together after everyone else is asleep. We found lobster on sale at Costco for $6.80 a pound, so we'll be having crustaceans, drawn butter, a salad, and baked potatoes for dinner; tea and sparkling cider for drinks, and crème caramel (egg custard) for dessert. And wine for toasting at midnight.

Times Square (NYC) by Michael McDonough(^),
used under Creative Commons License

Tomorrow begins a new year. Last year I made a few resolutions...

• At the end of last year, I resolved to lose weight, and I did - I'm down about 20 pounds. Yay!
• I resolved to exercise, and I did, some. I need to do more. Semi-yay!
  
• I resolved to not chicken out and finally do something about the pain I'd been feeling, and I had minor surgery in February. The surgery went well, and combined with no longer eating wheat, my pain is gone. Yay!
• I resolved to be neater, and made some progress, but probably not as much as I should or could have. I like clean, but don't really mind clutter. I wish it bothered me more, I guess. Another semi-yay!
• Work on crafty things more than the previous year. I did ok on this resolution. Probably could have done more, but did a whole lot more than the previous year, so I think I'm happy.
  
  
  Our dog, if he were green and made from polymer clay.
  
  
• I resolved to get out with friends more. I didn't really do very well with this one at all. Phooey. I will double down and make more of an effort in 2009.
  
• My final resolution, shared with my husband, was to follow the Compact. The Compact is a group of people who resolve not to purchase anything new for a year and to look carefully at their purchases to determine what is truly needed and what is merely wanted. It isn't a matter of debt or anything like that (for us, at least). It was an exercise in discipline and of discovery, of what is really important.
  
  You can read more about the Compact here at Good Magazine(^) or here at the San Francisco Chronicle(^) .

We did very well for a long time, then moderately well for a while, then not so well. We were disappointed that we weren't able to last a whole year, but are resolved to try again, starting tomorrow. We've written up our own guidelines for the coming year, which are:

Follow the basic Compact - no non-necessary spending on new anything unless it is a matter of health job, and/or safety, with the following details:

• Mutually agreed upon educational materials for SuperCat are exempt if we can't find them used or at the library. She's currently learning to read and we may need a book or two.
  
• Memberships may be exempt, as they are services. They would include membership to the Denver Museum of Science and Nature, the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, and possibly to Costco.
  
• Mutually agreed upon materials to finish previously started projects - limited to those items only (i.e., bias tape to finish a previously started sewing project, nails to finish a wood project, etc.) may be exempt, as it is utterly wasteful to abandon a dress, for example, for lack of three buttons.
  
• New clothes for SuperCat if she needs them; only if clothes can't be found elsewhere (hand me downs, sewing, etc.
  
• Remodeling materials, always checking Restore(^) first.
• All gifts & cards should be handmade (I'm already working on Valentines Day ).
  
• Internet connection, computer parts, etc., necessary to keep the computers in good working order. Mutual agreement on new purchases in this area.
  
• Postage as needed.
• Try to move toward more sustainable habits, like: cloth napkins, hanging out more clothes to dry, etc.
  
• Dinner/lunch out no more than 2x week. Week starts on Sunday and ends Saturday night. Eating out is almost certainly more wasteful than eating in.
  
• Freecycle(^)/FreeSharing(^), hand-me-downs, antiquing, thrift, Restore(^), etc., is always preferable to new whenever feasible.
• Food, obviously, is exempt.
  
• Utilities, insurance, etc., to maintain our household are exempt. We have to stay warm.
  
• Medicine, medical care and pharmacy needs are exempt. We have to stay healthy.
  
• Car repairs as needed to maintain safety are exempt. We have to stay safe.
  
• Career-related materials are automatically exempt. Self-explanatory.
  

That's pretty much it. It's not too difficult in some ways, very difficult in others. Consumerism is a habit many of us don't think a lot about, it has become automatic.

My own resolutions this year are:

• Join a local knitting group. I had plans to join in October, but something came up and I couldn't. I have enough yarn to knit the entire year away without fear of running out, and the women in the group seem to be clever and smart and are obviously talented.
  
• Exercise an hour a day. I'm not quite there yet, but getting closer.
  
• Lose weight (who doesn't have this as a resolution?).
  
• Grow my hair out longer than it is now.
  
• Complete projects I've started but haven't finished. They include finishing some knitting, finishing a set of dolls, completing some earrings, a quilt, and some tutus.
  
  
  doughnut earrings on silver wire in need of findings to be finished
  (that's what jewelry parts are called, findings)
  
  
  cupcake earrings which need to be finished
  
• Try to reduce the amount of clutter in every aspect of our lives. To me, clutter isn't only stuff. Clutter is anything that we don't need or want.
  
• Make soap with lye. I'd like to try my hand at making a super-fatted soap to use as a shampoo bar.
  
• Make cheese from scratch. This just sounds like fun, doesn't it?
  
• Edge closer to an all-Linux environment, computer-wise. I'm more than half-way there. My desktop machine is all-Linux, and my laptop dual-boots.
  
  
  Resolved: to spend more time with Tux, the Linux mascot
  
• Make more of our food from scratch. We've made huge strides in this area, and I'd like to continue. Cooking from scratch is rewarding and fun.
  
  
  homemade french onion soup
  
• Make treats instead of buying them. I already regularly make Chex Mix, marshmallow treats, and cupcakes. In the last month or so, we've made double chocolate rocky road fudge (with marshmallows and walnuts), and hard lollipops. Both were easy and fun, and both were so much better than anything we could have bought. Next year we plan to pull taffy and make peanut brittle.
  
• Follow the Compact, and apply it to everything above.

So, how about you? What are your New Years resolutions? Whatever you choose,

Happy New Year!

Namaste.

Current Mood: cool

Snap! Crackle! Pop! It's Christmas!

According to the SuperCat, the favorite food of pink ponies everywhere is Rice Krispie Treats. And since she has a stable full of pink ponies, she asked me to make some.
You know. For the ponies.

How could anyone say no to that kind of request?

For me, hot dogs and watermelon slices are the Fourth of July. Jiffy Pop popcorn is what we had on the nights we had a babysitter. Caramel corn and orange cream filled chocolates will always be Halloween. And Rice Krispies Treats and Divinity Fudge are Christmas.

Rice Krispies Treats remind me of Christmas at my aunt and uncle's house, where we'd go after we'd visited my grandparents on the other side of the family on Christmas Eve. People don't seem to talk the way they did when I was a kid; I recall my mother, aunts and grandmother sitting in the kitchen during the holidays, smoking, picking at food, and sharing bits of information sotto voce, so the children wouldn't hear. I would often sit quietly and read; if I sat quietly enough, they'd eventually forget I was in the room and you'd hear the good stuff about anyone who happened to not be there at the moment, about people you may not have known, but who seemed to lead scandalous lives. Days of Our Lives had nothing on my family.

I no longer have a large family; I live far, far away from most everyone I knew back then. The family I do have doesn't sit around and chat that way, but I still make certain dishes to remind myself of earlier times and to help create memories for my own children.

Before I stopped eating wheat, if I wanted to make Rice Krispies Treats, I bought a box of Rice Krispies, and followed the directions on the back of the box. Ten minutes or so later, I'd have a pan of hot treats, and the hardest part would be waiting for them to cool.

Now it's not quite so easy. Rice Krispies contain gluten in the form of barley malt, which is a natural flavoring.

So, I go to the health food store and get Erewhon Crispy Brown Rice Cereal(^). It's sort of expensive, but tastes good. It's nutty versus the blander taste of Rice Krispies, but I like it, which is surprising. I'm not really a brown rice sort of person - I can remember eating whole wheat bread for the first time when I was maybe 10 or so and thinking that it was terribly exotic, by which I mean it was terrible, period. I'm still pretty much convinced that a mayonaiise and tomato sandwich on whole wheat may be illegal. It's certainly immoral. I really disliked whole wheat then and even now, whole grains bring to mind the lady that lived next door when I was little. She watched Jack Lalanne(^) every morning, did calisthenics in a black leotard, and earnestly gave the neighborhood kids ice cream served with toasted soy nuts on top in an attempt to make it healthy.

Of course, regardless of my feelings, my own children don't know any better; refined white bread has never been an option in their lives. It's been whole multi-grain bread or bust.

Bu back to the sugary sweets at hand: here is the original recipe for Rice Krispies from Kellogg's website, RiceKrispies.com(^)

Kellogg's Rice Krispies

• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 package (10 oz., about 40) regular marshmallows
• - OR -
• 4 cups miniature marshmallows
• 6 cups Rice Krispies®

Click on the website link above for directions.

If you simply substitute the Erewhon for the Kellogg's, it doesn't turn out quite right; it'll be dry and crunchy, not moist and chewy, so I change the recipe a bit. Here's mine:
Brown Rice Marshmallow Treats

• 5 ½ cups of gluten free brown rice cereal (Erewhon is my favorite, but there are others)
• 40 regular-sized marshmallows I have never seen marshmallows that have gluten in them, but anything is possible, so it's always a good idea to check.
  
• 2 tsp vanilla Vanilla is normally gluten-free since the alcohol base is distilled, not brewed.
• 4 tbsp (½ stick) butter I don't use margarine, but if you do, it works just fine. The only thing that doesn't seem to work is the diet margarines and spreads.
  

1. Melt butter over medium-low heat in large skillet.
2. Once melted, add marshmallows and stir occasionally until melted.
3. When the marshmallows have melted, add vanilla.
4. Stir briefly, then add rice cereal.
5. Stir until coated with spatula.
6. Turn out into a buttered pan, or onto a Silpat. If a Silpat is used, use the spatula to mold into desired shape.
   
   
   On the Silpat, a silicon embedded baking mat that pretty much nothing sticks to.
   
   
   
7. Once cool, cut into whatever shape you like, or if you'd prefer, once it is cooled a bit, press into molds using cookie cutters or sushi molds.
   
   
   This is a flower-shaped sushi mold.
   Cookie cutters work fine if you don't have one of these.
   
   After they've been molded.
   
   The completed treats, minus the ones that were eaten when they were still warm and gooey.
8. Enjoy!
   
   He's happy to be a guinea pig for once.
   
   Yummy
   
   The smile makes it all worthwhile (not that marshmallow treats are super difficult or anything).
   

And that's it. Allez Cuisine!

I found this today, from the fine folks at Quick Stop Entertainment(^), and the staggering talents who create The Venture Bros(^)., Henchmen 21 & 24 singing Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmastime(^). Links to songs from previous years can be found here.

I can hear sleigh bells in the distance, so I'd better close for now and rush my gluten-free cookies and a glass of milk to the hearth for Santa.

Until later, have the Merriest of Christmases!

Namaste.

Current Mood: festive

NORAD Tracks Santa

To the immediate south of Pikes Peak is Cheyenne Mountain.

Photo of Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado
by Fish Cop, released to public domain(^)

There is a wonderful zoo on the side of the mountain, the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo(^), which has a prolific giraffe breeding program (just as cool: you can feed and touch the giraffes). At the foot of Cheyenne Mountain is the 5-star Broadmoor Hotel(^), and at the top you can find the Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun(^).

Photo of the Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun
by Matt Wright(^), permission: Attribution ShareAlike 2.5(^)

Deep inside Cheyenne Mountain you would, if you could, find the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station buried 2000 feet below the surface of the Earth. Since the cold war, the CMAFS, NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command), and other agencies have monitored (in real time) a worldwide system of satellites and other sensors that protect the United States and her allies.

Inside Cheyenne Mountain, public domain photo(^)

In 1955, the local Sears department store ran an ad for children to call Santa and give him their Christmas wishlist(^). That year, Sears inadvertently gave the phone number for CONAD (Continental Air Defense), the precursor of NORAD in the advertisement and children began calling. Colonel Harry Shoup was on duty that night, and was the first to receive a call from a local child wanting to speak to Santa. Once the colonel figured out what had happened, he instructed his staff to locate Santa for the children who called.

Every year since, on Christmas Eve, the brave men and women who work to protect us every day gear up to track Santa Claus using satellites, radar, and Santa Cam(^) on his journey around the world. Last year NORAD highlighted about two dozen of Santa's stops, including Auckland, Moscow, Egypt, Machu Picchu, and even the Space Shuttle.

When Santa enters North American airspace, Canadian NORAD fighter pilots, meet and welcome Santa to North America, flying CF-18 which are equipped with Santa Cams.

Once Santa reaches the United States, NORAD fighter pilots in either F-15 or F-16s fly alongside Santa and his reindeer, using the Santa Cam to broadcast video of Santa as he crosses the continent bringing gifts to children everywhere.

If you'd like to track Santa along with NORAD this year, you can find their website, NORAD Santa right here(^) starting at:

• 3 a.m. Pacific Standard Time
• 4 a.m. Mountain Standard Time
• 5 a.m. Central Standard Time
• 6 a.m. Eastern Standard Time
• 11 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time

There's even a Google widget to help with tracking (found here^)

Here's hoping that Santa brings you what your heart desires this (and every) year.

Namaste.

Current Mood: hopeful