Anti-anxiety Spell/Chant

Whenever you are feeling anxious, take several deep breaths and repeat the following until you have calmed down.

Nervous anxiety, you are dead. 
Lord and lady, soothe my head.
Bring me to your calming peace 
as I will, so mote it be.

Cleaning 101

Basic tips and tricks to get the entire house sparkling, from quick cleaning strategies to supplies to stock.

CLICK HERE!!!

Perry's pastor pal Jeffress called 'a poster boy for hatred'

Story courtesy of USA Today:


Have you been condemned by Gov. Rick Perry's pastor pal Robert Jeffress yet today?

If not, you can check out the Morman-faith-bashing pastor in his own voice at Right Wing Watch. Or read up on how Jeffress told First Baptist Dallas on Sunday that

- Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Mormonism are all false religions and I stand by those statements.

Oh, and Catholicism, too. Religion News Service's daily roundup updates us on Jeffress' Catholic-bashing, noting the Catholic League item today on Jeffress, who last year had this to say about Catholicism:

- "Much of what you see in the Catholic Church today doesn't come from God's word. It comes from that cult-like pagan religion. Isn't that the genius of Satan?"

League voice Bill Donohue calls Jeffress,

- a poster boy for hatred, not Christianity.

RNS also catches us up with the questionable legality of the pastor's politicized preaching.

Americans United for the Separation of Church and State has asked the IRS to investigate whether Dallas Pastor Robert Jeffress flouted federal law when he put a video clip about his endorsement of presidential candidate Rick Perry on the church's web site.

The Satan-slinging religious exchanges in the presidential primary campaign so far are starting to sound like an episode from South Park.

However, Southern Baptist theologian Al Mohler upholds the idea that voters of faith might likely want to choose a candidate who shares their Biblical worldview. But no way is he climbing out on the ledge with Jeffress. Mohler blogs:

...We must be honest and acknowledge that there are non-Christians or non-evangelicals who share far more of our worldview and policy concerns than some others who identify as Christians. The stewardship of our vote demands that we support those candidates who most clearly and consistently share our worldview and combine these commitments with the competence to serve both faithfully and well.

Chicken Divan

6 servings
Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups diced leek, white and light green parts only (about 1 large; see Tip)
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup low-fat milk
2 tablespoons dry sherry (see Tip)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 10-ounce boxes frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, or 1 pound broccoli crowns (see Ingredient Note), chopped
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat a 7-by-11-inch (2-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.

Place chicken in a medium skillet or saucepan and add water to cover. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and slice into bite-size pieces.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add leek and salt and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add flour; stir to coat. Add broth, milk, sherry, thyme and pepper and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Add broccoli; return to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan, mayonnaise and mustard.

Spread half the broccoli mixture in the prepared baking dish. Top with the chicken, then the remaining broccoli mixture. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Bake until bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

TIPS & NOTES

Tips: To clean leeks, trim and discard green tops and white roots. Split leeks lengthwise and place in plenty of water. Swish the leeks in the water to release any sand or soil. Drain. Repeat until no grit remains.

Sherry is a type of fortified wine originally from southern Spain. Don't use the “cooking sherry” sold in many supermarkets—it can be surprisingly high in sodium. Instead, purchase dry sherry that's sold with other fortified wines in your wine or liquor store.

Ingredient Note: Most supermarkets sell broccoli crowns, which are the tops of the bunches, with the stalks cut off. Although crowns are more expensive than entire bunches, they are convenient and there is considerably less waste.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 308 calories; 10 g fat ( 4 g sat , 4 g mono ); 76 mg cholesterol; 20 g carbohydrates; 35 g protein; 4 g fiber; 712 mg sodium; 401 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (70% daily value), Vitamin A (35% dv), Calcium (30% dv), Folate (19% dv).

Skillet Tuna Noodle Casserole

6 servings
Active Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes


INGREDIENTS

8 ounces whole-wheat egg noodles
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups nonfat milk
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
12 ounces canned chunk light tuna drained (see Note)
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup coarse dry whole-wheat breadcrumbs (see Tip)

PREPARATION

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook noodles until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and rinse.

Position rack in upper third of oven and preheat broiler.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, mushrooms and salt and cook, stirring often, until the onion is softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add wine and cook until evaporated, 4 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle flour over the vegetables; stir to coat. Add milk and pepper and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Stir in tuna, peas and 1/2 cup Parmesan until evenly incorporated. Then, stir in the noodles (the pan will be very full). Remove from the heat.

Sprinkle the casserole with breadcrumbs and the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Broil until bubbly and lightly browned on top, 3 to 4 minutes.

TIPS & NOTES

Make Ahead Tip: Prepare through Step 3, spoon into an 8-inch-square glass baking dish, cover with foil and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and cheese (Step 4) and bake, covered, at 350°F for 50 minutes. Uncover and cook until browned and bubbly, about 15 minutes more.

Note: Chunk light tuna, which comes from the smaller skipjack or yellowfin, has less mercury than canned white albacore tuna. The FDA/EPA advises that women who are or might become pregnant, nursing mothers and young children consume no more than 6 ounces of albacore a week; up to 12 ounces of canned light tuna is considered safe.

Tip: To make fresh breadcrumbs, trim crusts from whole-wheat bread. Tear bread into pieces and process in a food processor until coarse crumbs form. One slice of bread makes about 1/2 cup fresh crumbs. For dry breadcrumbs, spread the fresh crumbs on a baking sheet and bake at 250°F until crispy, about 15 minutes. One slice of fresh bread makes about 1/3 cup dry crumbs. Or use prepared coarse dry breadcrumbs. We like Ian's brand labeled “Panko breadcrumbs.” Find them in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 406 calories; 8 g fat ( 3 g sat , 3 g mono ); 53 mg cholesterol; 47 g carbohydrates; 32 g protein; 5 g fiber; 684 mg sodium; 593 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Calcium (30% daily value), Potassium (17% dv), Iron, Vitamin A & Vitamin C (15% dv), good source of omega-3s.

New Focus

If you have looked at the new layout, you probably noticed the new blog focus...

"One lesbian's journey through life, marriage, pet parenting, and cancer...recipes, spells, pet care, news, movies, and all of the ups & downs of life!"

This blog will be an eclectic blend of different things...I hope you enjoy the new blog!

Dinner Tonight...

**This is a great dinner for you "cancer" days!!!

Grilled cheese & tomato soup...

Ingredients:

Cheese (sliced, whatever you like) - enough for 1 sandwich per person
Bread (sliced, whatever you like) - 2 slices per person
Butter (enough to thinly cover each slice of bread)
Tomato soup (canned or homemade (recipe HERE)

Instructions:

Butter 1 side of each piece of bread.
Heat a skillet, over medium heat, until warm.
Place 1 slice of bread, butter down in skillet.  Top with cheese & another slice of bread, butter up.
Cook until cheese melts and bottom toasts.  Flip & repeat.
Cook soup according to can instructions or follow recipe above.

25 Days of Christmas Movie Marathon

I told you I would get the list out before December...here it is...all titles are links to more movie info :c)


1 - Babes in Toyland
2 - Bah Humduck
3 - Barbie in a Christmas Carol & Barbie in the Nutcracker
4 - Beauty and the Beast: the Enchanted Christmas & Disney Princess: a Christmas of Enchantment
5 - Celtic Woman: A Christmas Celebration
6 - A Diva's Christmas Carol
7 - The Flintstones: a Flintstones Christmas in Bedrock & A Flintstones Christmas Carol
8 - Frosty the Snowman & Frosty Returns
9 - Holiday Inn
10 - White Christmas
11 - It's a Wonderful Life
12 - I'll Be Home for Christmas
13 - It's Christmas Time Again Charlie Brown
14 - Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special (side note...I love the story he tells about his daughter putting gas in her car!!!)
15 - Love Actually
16 - The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper & Prep and Landing & Prep and Landing Stocking Stuffer: Operation Secret Santa
17 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
18 - Santa Claus is Coming to Town
19 - The Santa Clause & The Santa Clause 2 & The Santa Clause 3: the Escape Clause
20 - Scrooge
21 - Deck the Halls
22 - Christmas With the Kranks
23 - Christmas in Connecticut
24 - A Christmas Carol (w/Patrick Stewart)
25 - A Charlie Brown Christmas & The Year Without a Santa Claus

31 Days of Halloween movie marathon...

Here is the list for the rest of the month...I cannot watch "hardcore" horror movies (Jaws still gives me nightmares)...so if you want a list of really good ones to watch, check THIS out!  If you are like me then chick THIS one out...(all movie titles are linked to more information about the film)...

October...

7 - The Haunted Mansion
8 - Corpse Bride
9 - Underworld
10 - Dracula
11 - The Wolf Man
12 - Van Helsing
13 - Beetlejuice
14 - Practical Magic
15 - Witches of Eastwick
16 - The Witches
17 - The Mummy
18 - Frankenstein
19 - Blair Witch Project & Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2
20 - Salem's Lot
21 - The Fog
22 - War of the Worlds
23 - Resident Evil: Extinction
24 - Jaws
25 - Poltergeist
26 - The Ring
27 - The Thing
28 - The Addams Family & The Addams Family Values
29 & 30 - Harry Potter marathon (all about HP here)
31 - Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown & The Nightmare Before Christmas

31 Days of Halloween movie marathon...

Today's movie...

Hocus Pocus

Tomorrow is probably going to be...

The Haunted Mansion

31 Days of Halloween movie marathon...

I have started this year's "31 Days of Halloween"...

**As always...movie titles are links...click for movie info :c)

October 1 - Halloweentown
October 2 - Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge
October 3 - Halloweentown High
October 4 - Return to Halloweentown
October 5 - Salem Witch Trials

I will update every few days...hopefully I can get the rest of the list compiled by the weekend for those who want to join in :c)

I promise to get the 25 Days of Christmas out before December :c)

"I'm Gonna Love You Through It" - Martina McBride

Soulmates

Humans originally consisted of four arms, four legs, and a single head made of two faces, but Zeus feared their power and split them all in half, condemning them to spend their lives searching for the other half to complete them.  Hence the term "soulmate".

Gay Marriage

New York is the 6th. state (along with Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Washington, D.C. and the Coquille Indian Tribe in Oregon) to legalize Gay Marriage...Yeah!

Now...I pose this question...How many states have to legalize Gay Marriage before the federal government gets on with it and makes it a national law?

Marriage is not about religion!  At least not in America it's not!  Marriage is about the thousands of legal rights that married couples have in our society!

I fully understand and support the portion of New York's new law that states basically...no church/clergy can be forced to perform a same-sex marriage ceremony.  Well DUH!  Why would we want to be married by someone  who doesn't want to perform our ceremony?  There are tons of officiants we can turn to...so if you don't want to perform a ceremony DON'T!

I guess there has to come a point where, as a society, we realize that everyone has their own belief system and to coexist as one nation we must learn to respect those beliefs!  I 100% support your right to dislike gay marriage...if you don't like gay marriage don't marry someone gay!  But in turn...you must respect my rights to believe/live as I choose!  I am not out protesting that straight people can get married and how I think it's gross!  It's really none of my business who you choose to marry/live/sleep with...just as it is none of your business who I choose to be with!

What is my business is this...when I die (which is going to happen sooner rather than later)...we had better hope that we have all of the dozens of different forms/wills/powers of attorney/etc. that we need, to afford Cris the same rights as a straight person who's spouse has died!  When straight couples marry it is assumed that when one of them dies the rights of inheritance are automatic!  LGBT couples must have tons of paperwork and attorneys fees just to ensure that our partners can decide where are bodies are buried and that they get to keep our home!  And God/ess help you if your partner dies and their family decides to fight all of the legal paperwork you worked so hard to compile!

I have actually heard of couples that were together for 20+ years...one dies...they had their paperwork all legal & filed w/the courts...but the deceased partner's family (who never liked that fact the he/she was LGBT) came in and challenged the paperwork and won!  20 years together and the surviving partner is left destitute on the street!  This is something a marriage license would have prevented!  Rights of survivorship are automatic when you are married!

SEE...IT'S NOT ABOUT RELIGION...IT'S ABOUT RIGHTS!

LezGetReal...so angry!

Ok...so if you haven't read it yet (CLICK ME) and you will see why I am so frickin' mad right now!

RANTING!

Keep your religion out of the government!  Not everyone is a Christian!  Get over it!  We are not all nor do we all want to be Christians!  Don't pray for guidance in how to run the nation/state!  Use your education and the opinions of the people you are supposed to be representing!  ALL of the people...not just the Christian people!  I am so tired of Christians saying America is a "Christian" nation!  The Founding Fathers would HATE that!  They founded this country to be a place for people of ALL religions!!!  How hard is it to separate your religion from your job????  Keep the Bible out of the court rooms and off public property!  Take "God" out of the Pledge of Allegiance and off our money!  God has NO PLACE in American government on any level!!!!!!!!!!

Ruminations...

Why do we do the things we do to one another?

When will we realize that everyone's faith/beliefs are as valid as our own?

Why can't people leave others alone to love who they choose?

When will people let God speak for His/Her-self?

Why do people find it necessary to knock on my door and try to preach at me?

How hard can it really be to stop spending money on crap we don't need and spend it on the things we do?

Why can't the governor live in a trailer?

Why do children/teens NEED multiple activities that keep them/their parents out until 9:00 p.m. EVERY night of the week?

How hard is it to cook dinner for your family every night?

Do you really NEED a 7 passenger SUV?

Why should people who don't have kids have to pay school taxes?

***These are the things I ponder when left alone and over medicated on cold/allergy pills :c) 

The M&M'S "Born Leader" Figurine: A Salute To The United States Marine Corps

Such a cute collectible I just had to share it!

The M&M'S "Born Leader" Figurine: A Salute To The United States Marine Corps

30 Days of War Movies...days 5-10

Ok...I got a bit behind...cancer sucks!  LOL

Day 5 - The Patriot (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0187393/ )

Day 6 - In Harm's Way (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0187393/ )

Day 7 - Operation Pacific (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043887/ )

Day 8 - A Bridge too Far (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075784/ )

Day 9 - The Fighting SeaBees (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036824/ )

Day 10 - A Few Good Men (movie info here... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104257/ )

The Pain & Sadness of Others...

Reading a blog...

The thoughts of a famous lesbian...a mom...a farm girl...

Always written in verse...never to the point...

Still conveys the loss/pain/loneliness...

Sadness & sympathy sister...you were done wrong...

By another famous lesbian!

30 Days of War Movies...Day 4

Today's movie is...


Battle Cry


A group of young Marines have adventures in love and war.


Full information can be found here...http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038160/

**All movie information is courtesy of IMDB

30 Days of War Movies...Day 3

Today's movie is...

They Were Expendable

A dramatized account of the role of the American PT Boats in the defense of the Philippines in World War II.

Full information can be found here...http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038160/
**All movie information is courtesy of IMDB

30 Days of War Movies...Day 2

Today's movie is...

The Sands of Iwo Jima



Marine sergeant John Stryker seems a martinet and a bully as he trains young Marines for combat in the Pacific war. In the end, as survival in the bloody battle of Iwo Jima depends on the lessons Stryker has drilled into them, his troops discover why he was so hard on them.

Full information can be found here...http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0041841/

**All movie information is courtesy of IMDB

30 Days of War Movies Suggestions...

If you have a suggestion of a movie I cannot miss for my 30 days of war movies...please e-mail me or leave a comment!

Movies must have a war/military theme!!!

**I cannot watch any movie about Vietnam!  This is an old promise to my father that I will honor always!**

30 Days of War Movies...Day 1

Starting today (May 2, 2011) and going until Memorial Day (May 30, 2011), I will be watching a different war/military themed movie everyday!

Today's movie is...

The Flying Misfits

"The Flying Misfits" is the pilot movie for the series "Baa Baa Black Sheep/Black Sheep Squadron".

Full information can be found here...http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073961/

**All movie information is courtesy of IMDB