Berni, still pondering but a lot further South

2012-12-10T11:35:00.001-08:00

Saying bye at least for now

2011-11-24T13:00:00.001-08:00

I haven't posted for a long long time and I think this blog is probably dead anyway. I am going to let the domain name die now and it will revert to www.caribooponderer.blogspot.com. Mainly I like to go back and see what I have written about Memories when we were doing Skittles meme.

I barely keep up with Facebook either now except to keep tabs on my sons. I don't know when the writing bug will hit me again if ever and should that happen I think I would start completely fresh. So thank you to all those who befriended me via this blog, some of you I see on Facebook and keep up with your doings that way. So God bless and have a happy Christmas season and a prosperous New Year.

Big disappointment

2011-04-02T18:56:00.001-07:00

We left early today from Merrit to Vancouver as my middle son had flown to Vancouver from Calgary to visit his brothers and we said we would come down for the day. This morning the shortest route the Coquihalla Hwy was socked in with snow so we opted to go the other way and got halfway there and an avalanche came down over the road and they turned us back. No visiting for me. Oh well at least we weren't under the avalanche.

Washing blowing in the wind

2011-03-30T11:17:00.001-07:00

Such a nice warm breezy day I have my washing out on the line, the first load of the year. I have been able to cut my electricity bill quite a bit since being here. I have been washing in cold water for years, but since moving I used the washing line from April to October to dry clothes and all winter I used a clothes horse in the spare bedroom just finishing them off in the dryer to soften. We have brought our bill down so I should see a $120 savings over the year. Not much you might think but combined with the 2 degrees lower on our thermostat our gas heating bill has dropped from what they predicted we would use by $144 so that amounts to $264 a year which is almost one month pad rent of found money.

Save the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves is a maximum often quoted in the UK and it is true everywhere. With vehicle gas and food going up in leaps and bounds I like to look at ways to save here and there. I would rather put a sweater on indoors than go without some of the other little things we like to do, such as eat out once in a while.

I am feeling guilty

2011-03-25T20:09:00.001-07:00

I have just spent a few moments going over past posts and I see I have faithful friends coming to visit and leave a comment and I so used to look forward to that. I so appreciate you ladies and a few gentlemen. Special mention to Jeni, Danielle, Cicero, Crazed Nitwit, Joy, Karen, JMB, Liz, Tossing Pebbles, Barb, Anna, Misty, Terry and many more.

I just can't seem to get the blogging enthusiasm again but I will keep it available in case any great insight occurs to me in the future. I do have your blogs on my reader and I have some of you as friends on Facebook and I enjoy your comments.

Life is generally good, I am doing some volunteering at church. Walking and visiting so getting out a lot more now.

I just finished canning many jars of spaghetti sauce, chili, and now plan to can steak and kidney. When it get very hot here in summer and we don't want to BBQ it will be handy to pull these out and zap them in the microwave and serve with salad, rather than heat up the place using the oven. We went through last summer without air conditioning and it was OK although most people have it here but I don't think it can be good for you coming in from the very hot outside to a cool room. By careful manipulation of venetions and windows I was able to keep it quite comfortable inside and it only grew a little warm between 6 - 9pm, and then because we are in a desert area it cools down at night so sleeping is not a problem.

So wishing you all a lovely spring.

Spring has sprung

2011-03-17T16:45:00.001-07:00

Lovely and warm today and snow all gone. definite feel of spring here, that is 2 months earlier than where we lived before. I have been very remiss in blogging these last few months and don't know if I will keep it up. I see one or two of the blogs I used to read have petered out too.

Have gained a couple of pounds over winter to have started back walking and cutting back portions a little. Just came back from visiting an elderly couple, both 86, smart as whips and lots of stories to tell. I have been trying to call every Thursday afternoon for about an hour as they don't have many visitors. Home group tonight and that is always fun.

Right now I am fighting the urge for a nap on the living room couch in the sunshine, if I go sit there and try to read it will be game over.

Nothing more to report or say right now.

My goodness it is ages since I posted

2011-02-08T12:30:00.001-08:00

I checked my blog yesterday and found I hadn't posted since the end of December. I had paid for my domain name for another year but have failed to use it. Life is good and fuller than when I was up north. We had company over Christmas which was lovely and have kept busy since. Dave has gutted the bathroom and now I have everything new from tub to potty. Looks nice and clean, we kept with my favourite tones of old gold and pale yellow which we had up north. We will put a skylight in there in summer. Now he is building a large mirrored cabinet to go in there. Next is new counter tops for the kitchen. The dishwasher was broken so we decided to go back to washing dishes by hand since most of the time it is only the two of us. There will be days I will wish I had a dishwasher but as long as I keep on top of the dirty dishes it is not too bad and Dave does his share when he is not busy.

We put some hyacinths in pots just before Christmas and now four of them have bloomed and we have a lovely spring fragrance throughout the place. We also put in tulips and they have poked up already. They were meant to be put out in spring but they beat us to it. The weather here is much better than where we last lived, although we have snow and cold days it doesn't last as long and the road is kept well. We are only 8 minutes from town anyway so we go out often instead of only once every two weeks.

We attend church every Sunday now and also a home group on Thursdays. Also I have been visiting an elderly couple once a week. They are both 86 and I was told they fell in love nine years ago and got married. They both were widowers. They are so cute. I guess it is never to late for love.

I have been asked to contribute in our home group on spiritual gifts for the next few weeks. Unfortunately my printer packed in so will have to think about a new one soon, I want a wireless one so I can keep it in the spare room rather than on my desk and I can have it usable from both desktop and laptop computers.

I signed up for Netflix movies at the end of December. You get one free month and then it is only $7.99 a month after that to view as often as you like. So I have been knitting and viewing. I started with Pride and Prejudice and others I have long wanted to see but we were not anywhere near a video rental place or a movie theatre .Then I found the TV series Heroes and I have been hooked and have been watching each one in turn. It is weird there is no denying but I like weird, and there is quite a bit of violence but it is part of the story. I finished the sweater last night and now have to block it and piece together. It would never have got done but for Netflix, it has been over two years in the making.

So that is all for now.

My end of year rant

2010-12-30T18:52:00.003-08:00

As a senior and one day possibly living alone on a low income and needing assistance there is a lot of truth to the following.

Let's put the seniors in jail and the criminals in nursing homes.
This would correct two things in one motion:

Seniors would have access to showers, hobbies and walks.
They would receive unlimited free prescriptions, dental and medical treatment, wheel chairs, etc.
They would receive money instead of having to pay it out.
They would have constant video monitoring, so they would be helped instantly if they fell or needed assistance.
Bedding would be washed twice a week and all clothing would be ironed and returned to them..
A guard would check on them every 20 minutes.
All meals and snacks would be brought to them.
They would have family visits in a suite built for that purpose.
They would have access to a library, weight/fitness room, spiritual counseling, a pool and education...and free admission to in-house concerts by nationally recognized entertainment artists.
Simple clothing - i.e., shoes, slippers, pj's - and legal aid would be free, upon request.
There would be private, secure rooms provided for all with an outdoor exercise yard complete with gardens.
Each senior would have a P.C., T.V., phone and radio in their room at no cost.
They would receive daily phone calls.
There would be a board of directors to hear any complaints and the ACLU would fight for their rights and protection.
The guards would have a code of conduct to be strictly adhered to, with attorneys available, at no charge to protect the seniors and their families from abuse or neglect.

As for the criminals:

They would receive cold food or a can of dog food the same as many seniors who have to stretch out their pensions.
They would be left alone and unsupervised as many seniours who can't afford help
They would receive showers once a week unlike many seniors who can't manage the bath by themselves.
They would live in tiny rooms, for which they would have to pay by working
They would have no hope of ever getting out.
"Sounds like justice to me!"

Maybe our governments should change their emphasis on the criminal who undermines society and look to their elderly who have raised citizens, obeyed the laws and worked for a living. But our society is youth oriented and when you are old you are not longer considered useful. Something we could learn from aboriginal societies and the Orient is respect for the elders in our communities.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-20T10:09:00.004-08:00

and a very Happy New Year

Starting the season on the right note

2010-12-04T13:24:00.002-08:00

Chickpea success

2010-11-27T18:07:00.001-08:00

At one time I made crepes quite often as they were a great way to dress up leftovers with perhaps a cheese sauce over the top but since being diagnosed with diabetes I have had to avoid flour as it raises the blood sugar too much. Some time ago I started experimenting with chickpea flour. I found it in our local grocery store in the ethnic foods section. It has very little taste so substitutes quite well for white flour. I have been using it to thicken gravies with success and adding it to the flatbreads I make for myself. So tonight’s supper was crepes wrapping spinach and shrimp and topped with melted cheese. Dave said they were okay so they have passed the acid test. Chickpea flour has about half the impact on blood sugars that white flour has and contains no gluten for the celiacs out there. Also it has vitamins and minerals in it which white flour does not, even weevils can’t survive in white flour. Here is the recipe. I had to add an egg as my first crepe stuck but it could have been not enough olive oil or not quite the right temperature.

1 cup chickpea flour (also called garbanzo flour, gram flour or besan)
1 1/4 cup water
1/8 teaspoon baking powder, optional
Oil for cooking crepes

Heat a non-stick pan. Pour a ladle of batter on the hot pan. Using the ladle or back of a spoon, spread the batter around to form a thin crepe. Drizzle about 1/2 teaspoon oil over the crepe. Cook on medium heat for about 1 minutes or till the bottom side is golden and sides start to crisp. Using a spatula, flip the crepe over and cook the other side till golden. Serve hot.

I think I will try it in place of wheat flour in a Wacky Cake and see what happens.

Almond meal cookies

2010-11-20T13:23:00.001-08:00

Almond meal is a good alternative to grains for celiacs or diabetics who should dramatically cut out their grains. In fact the only grains that do not raise blood sugars are rolled oats and pot or pearl barley and only a 1/3 of a cup at a meal. Hardly worth it but I do eat these once in a while. I have messed around with this recipe quite a bit adding ginger and cinnamon, a chip of dark chocolate the 90% cocoa kind on top. I added oatmeal and 1 raisin per cookie and so on.

Dense, delicate, and delicious, these almond cookies come highly recommended.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup almond meal
1 cup Splenda or other sweetner or for non diabetics use half sugar and half stevia
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking soda

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Stir together almond meal, baking soda and your choice of sweetner, then blend in the butter, egg, and vanilla. Refrigerate dough for half an hour. Spoon out one-inch balls onto a greased or non-stick cookie sheet and flatten with a fork. Bake for eight minutes or until set. Be careful not to let your cookies brown, because that means they’re too well done. Allow them to cool for 2 minutes on the sheet before moving them.

These are high in good fats low in carbs but don’t indulge too freely because they are higher in calories than a grain products but if you keep your carbs in the low range the odd cookie now and then won’t harm.

Sounds like a load of cucumber to me

2010-11-16T16:04:00.000-08:00

I doubt this is true, maybe some of it is. Does anyone know.

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ru ining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5 Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!

6.. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed an d headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber with react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemicals will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

Pita bread, laptops and other stuff

2010-11-12T22:02:00.000-08:00

Dave has been buying pita bread lately and commented on how much he enjoyed them so I thought I should have a go at making some since I have been given a 50lb bag of organic whole grain wheat and I don't have room in my freezer for it, so I need to use it up. I found a recipe in Laural's Kitchen an old hippy style vegetarian cookbook I have had since before my first son was born over 32 years ago. The pita bread turned out pretty good so now I guess I have a job every week or so.

A couple of our new friends in the park have recently purchased laptops and I am on call pretty much to help out but that's okay as I rather enjoy helping people with their computers, the only trouble is it makes me a bit envious as I want a nice new laptop since I am still using my desktop XP and Dave has our laptop which has Vista. Now I want the new Windows 7 and a faster better computer. I will never be satisfied though as soon as a new gadget comes out I want it.

It was a fabulous day today, cool but sunny and we walking ladies, now there are four, took our 6km (3 & 3/4 miles) walk. We work up quite a sweat by the time we get back home. I haven't lost any weight by the scales but I am a little slimmer and I am hoping when I go and get my blood work results from the doctor it will reflect in the cholesterol reading since I have been doing it now for six months. Three of us drove up to Kamloops on Wednesday because myself and a friend had booked a mammogram, so that is another health responsibility taken care of. We had a great ladies day out and a lot of laughs. This move has been so good for me.

Dave has just had a friend over to play cribbage for a couple of hours and they have arranged to go fishing on Sunday afternoon. He is enjoying the new place too and when I looked back at some pictures of Granisle at this time last year there was 8 inches of snow. The heavy winter cloud which does not leave Granisle until about February when it gets to -30C was already hanging over the village. We don't have any snow, here in Merritt yet, and it is almost always sunny in this part of BC so much easier to handle and I don't think Dave will have to deal with SAD this year although I hate to see the evening draw in so much earlier but only five weeks until the shortest day and the days get longer again.

I have done all my Christmas shopping I did it online and it is winging its way to me as I type. So relaxing. We have bought a tree and lights and stuff until later, I have two turkeys and two hams in the freezer and some baking done so I am pretty organized for Christmas.

So that is it for now with catch you later. BTW I do read your posts and comment once in a while but much much less time on the computer than before.

For Remembrance Day ~ The Box

2010-11-10T18:31:00.003-08:00

For Remembrance Day The Box (Words by Lascelles, recited by John Denver on the album Poems, Prayers & Promises)

Once upon a time in the land of hushaby

Around about the wondrous days of yore

They came across this sort of box, bound up with chains and locked with locks

And labeled "Kindly do not touch, its war."

Decree was issued round about, all with a flourish and a shout

And a gaily coloured mascot tripping lightly on before

"Don't fiddle with this deadly box or break the chains or pick the locks

And please, don't ever play about with war!"

Well, the children understood, children happen to be good

And they were just as good around the time of yore

They didn't try to pick the locks, or break into that deadly box

They never tried to play about with war

Mommies didn't either, sisters, aunts, and grannies neither

For they were quiet, sweet and pretty in those wondrous days of yore

They're very much the same as now, not the ones to blame somehow

For opening up that deadly box of war

But someone did, someone battered in the lid

And spilled the insides out across the floor

A sort of bouncy, bumpy ball made up of guns and flags and all the tears and horror and the death that goes with war.

It bounced right out, and went bashing all about

And bumping into everything in store

And what was sad and most unfair is that it didn't seem to care

Much who it bumped or why, or what, or for

It bumped the children mainly and I'll tell you this quite plainly

It bumps them every day, and more and more.

And leaves them dead and burned and dying, thousands of them sick and crying

For when it bumps, its really very sore

Now there's a way to stop the ball, it isn't difficult at all -

All it takes is wisdom, I'm absolutely sure that we could get it in the box,

And bind the chains and lock the locks

No one seems to want to save the children any more

No? Well, that's the way it all appears

'Cause it's been bouncing round for years and years

In spite of all the wisdom wizzed since those wondrous days of yore

Since the time they came across the box

Bound up with chains and locked with locks

And labeled "Kindly do not touch, its war.

Signs of a stroke plus a new one to look for

2010-11-01T15:40:00.002-07:00

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKe

Remember the '3' steps, STR. Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S *Ask the individual to SMILE.

T *Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently - i.e. It is sunny out today.)

R *Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

plus this new sign of a stroke. Ask the person to 'stick' out his tongue.. If the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other, that is also an indication of a stroke.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call emergency number immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

What’s new

2010-10-27T17:25:00.000-07:00

Well I am an Avon lady now. I didn’t really intend to become one I just wanted a few products but outside the supermarket a woman had a stall set up and we started chatting and she said that if I wanted she would come over and explain it all to me. In the course of that she told me I could get 40% of the products I wanted just for signing up, who could resist. So I got my brochures a couple of weeks ago and gave them out to five women in the park and yesterday a large box was delivered. Not only did I get 40% of my purchases but they sent me a whole lot of free stuff. Today I dropped off my customers purchases. I don’t intend and don’t expect to get really into it but I do like looking through their brochures and they do sell themselves. I was meant to hand out more brochures but I couldn’t pluck up courage to knock on doors so I put them on the covered porches I could find. No one contacted me from that probably because I didn’t make myself known. I would make a terrible Jehovah’s Witness.

Today I made almond milk for the first time. It was so easy and so much less carbohydrates than regular milk. I was told milk increases mucus and since I have allergies it would be a good idea to substitute. So first I tried soy milk which I don’t mind but I changed from soy milk as I discovered it was giving me hot flashes, something I haven’t had in a very long time. Apparently soy milk is high in estrogens and as little as two cups a day can cause problems. By making my own almond milk I save about $1.50 on a litre of bought stuff and it doesn’t have the cane sugar in it which I would rather be without. I sweetened with stevia. The left over almond meal I used to make oatmeal raisin cookies and almond meal is a good substitute for wheat flour another thing that I eat in limited quantities.
I bought some chickpea flour the other day and am having a go at making socco which is a flat bread which is very popular in the Mediterranean countries.

We have been going to a home group every Thursday evening and our group is going through ‘Christian Life and Witness’ put out by the Billy Graham Association. I thought it would be a bit dull but it is very good.
My family are coming for Christmas although not actually on Christmas day, we will celebrate on the 27th. Hopefully this will be the start of a new tradition. So many good things since we moved.

An update on my youngest son who moved from Calgary to take the animation job in Vancouver. He has been promoted to lead animator so he said his name will be on the box when the game comes out. Lots more responsibility but valuable experience. Not bad after two months and from something that was just a hobby.

Not been blogging much as you know but have renewed my domain address so you probably will hear from me now and then. I still read your blogs but my life now is not revolving around the computer which is so much healthier so only comment once in a while. I am walking with three other women six days a week and we do 6 1/2 kilometres (4 miles) every day so that takes an hour and a quarter of what used to be computer time.

Can’t think of anything else right now. Catch you later

Fresh look at an old story - do you recognize it

2010-10-06T21:44:00.001-07:00

In my mail today, clever

Feeling footloose and frisky, a featherbrained fellow

forced his fond father to fork over his farthings. He flew

far to foreign fields and frittered his fortune, feasting

fabulously with faithless friends.

Finally facing famine and fleeced by his fellows-in-folly,

he found himself a feed flinger in a filthy farmyard.

Fairly famished, he fain would have filled his frame with

foraged food from the fodder fragments.

"Fooey, my father's flunkies fare far fancier," the

frazzled fugitive fumed feverishly, frankly facing facts.

Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding, he fled

forthwith to his family. Falling at his father's feet, he

floundered forlornly, "Father, I have flunked and

fruitlessly forfeited family favor."

But the faithful father, forestalling further flinching,

frantically flagged the flunkies to fetch forth the finest

fatling and fix a feast.

The fugitive's fraternal faultfinder frowned on the fickle

forgiveness of former failure. His fury flashed, but

fussing was futile.

The farsighted father figured, "Such filial fidelity is

fine, but what forbids fervent festivity for the fugitive

is found. Unfurl the flags with flaring, let fun and

frolic freely flow. Former failure is forgotten, folly

forsaken. Forgiveness forms the foundation for future

fortune."

Mind mapping

2010-10-04T16:05:00.000-07:00

I have been checking different mind mapping software and eventually found one I like that is free called Freeplane. A mind map is a graphical way to represent ideas and concepts. It is a visual thinking tool that helps structuring information, helping you to better analyze, comprehend, synthesize, recall and generate new ideas. Mind mapping helps clarify your thinking in pretty much anything, in many different contexts: personal, family, educational or business. Planning your day or planning your life, summarizing a book, launching a project, planning and creating presentations, writing blog posts -well, you get the idea – anything, really.
In a mind map, as opposed to traditional note taking or a linear text, information is structured in a way that resembles much more closely how your brain actually works. Since it is an activity that is both analytical and artistic, it engages your brain in a much, much richer way, helping in all its cognitive functions.

What can we use mind maps for?
Note taking
Brainstorming (individually or in groups)
Problem solving
Studying and memorization
Planning
Researching and consolidating information from multiple sources
Presenting information
Gaining insight on complex subjects
Jogging your creativity

This is my first mind map. Starting from a course I am taking and moving into a course I will be teaching in April. Each separate heading has notes and webpages attached. One can add pictures as well. There are quite a few mind mapping tools out there but I can’t resist the free. It is not too difficult to learn, it has taken me about an hour.
Freeplane download

I am a prayer

2010-10-03T20:03:00.001-07:00

I have been looking up articles on mind mapping and in my travels came across this, thought it was worth sharing.

I am a Prayer.

In haste I was put together at approximately 10:03 yesterday morning.

There is nothing in my appearance that would attract you to me. I'm not like Beckham - more like Rooney.

I've got no rhythm and no rhyme, no punctuation, no onomatopoeia, no cutting edge, no mojo. I'm half baked: Each word held together simply by the string of a sincere heart of the One who prayed me into existence.

As I look around I can see that I'm not alone. Other prayers just like me gather in little clusters across the room while others shoot up like disappearing rockets into the air. Some linger, some evaporate, some fall, yet many move swiftly to a destination we all know to be real and magnificent. I am a Prayer of Hope. My mission is to arrive safely at the Throne of God, and ask if I can be granted a favour from the King.

No one knows, neither my Sender nor my associates, if I'll be answered completely or not at all. Yet, as a prisoner of hope, I have an obligation to attend the hearing and wait for Heaven's reply.

Within me, somewhere within me, is a feeling of de ja vu - a feeling that I've been prayed about many times before. Apart from a similar string of words lying motionless on the bedroom floor, I'm convincied that, clumsy as I am, I am in fact a living expression of a Word of Faith originating from God Himself.

I am, what they call, a Prayer Request. The heart that bore me is what they call a Believing Heart. Sometime prior to my birth, this ordinary yet believing heart had received through the post some important documentation regarding the Will of God. It was during a time of trial and it contained no specific details about me, but it did contain a Promise about God's ability to provide, when all other rivers of provision have completely run dry. It was that Promise that instantly created Faith in the Heart of my Sender.

Between 10:01 and 10:23 I was one of many prayers prayed by the One who created me. I watched as some just dropped to the ground like dead weights in water. Those were the Prayers of Self - self pity, self satisfaction and self centeredness reflecting the raw emotions of my Sender's soul. They were, however, only the minority.

One by one other prayer requests came over to join with me - each one as hastily and speedily put together as the one before, yet together we hovered, gently rising and gently falling in the atmosphere of faith and fury that surrounded us.

Suddenly a jolt came from underneath us, and we were thrust upwards and forward towards our destiny - The Throne of Grace and Mercy in our time of need. We were being lifted by what could only be described as a multitude of wings, flapping there way higher and closer towards the Throne. I was soon to discover that these wings were also prayers - the prayers of Praise and Thankfulness, and the Prayers of Worship. There were also known as the 'Hallowed be your Name' Prayers, sent to big up the character of God and all of His activity over the earth in recent times.

It became clear that my sender was following a pattern of prayer set in Philippians 4: 6 -7.

"Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanks giving, present your requests to God"

Suddenly, we all became aware of a tangible Wind of Peace that transcended past us resting deep within both the heart and mind of the One who sent us. It was obvious to us all that this Wind of Peace must have contained an assurance not so much of all prayers being answered, but all prayers being heard and listened to by The Father above.

The Heart that bore me was happy to send me even if God's ways proved a little higher and God's thought's a little wiser than His own.

Upon arrival at the Throne of Grace we were broken into two groups - the Prayers of Hope and the Prayers of Faith. The Prayers of Faith went straight to the head of the line to receive precisely what they requested. They knew that if they asked they would receive, what they sought after they would find and if they knocked, the door would be opened.

I noticed that even before the request was given in at the Throne of Grace by the Prayer of Faith, the answers were already waiting - all boxed up, wrapped up and locked up just waiting for the request to be received. For every prayer, there was already an answer!

Yet, within the queue, the Prayer of Hope of which I was a representative far out numbered the Prayers of Faith. It was obvious that while they had been sent with a direct promise that they would get exactly what they asked, we had not. We'd all come from a Heart of Faith, both sent to the Fathers Throne, yet our destinies were divided.

Amongst us all were Prayers of Transformation - requests that God would break habits, change our ways and release the victory of Christ into our hearts and minds. Queuing up were Prayers of Influence - requests for greater influence upon the lives of others at work, in college, in the city, in church and in the community.

There was also a huge number of Prayers of Blessing - requests for finance, friends, abundance, health and prosperity. Some of these were Prayers of Faith, some Prayers of Hope - but all rising from real belief and real conviction.

Some of us were just four or five words irregularly stuck together. Others were like the game of Jenga - words stacked messily and awkwardly together. Yet all of us would have a hearing before God.

Suddenly, as we waited, we felt like we were being stormed by an invasion of paratroopers landing all around us. Emblazened on half of their parachutes were the words 'Thy Kingdom Come', and on the other half were the words 'Thy Will be Done' . They possessed a boldness and a stubbornness that I'd never seen before. Each claimed their right for the Kingdom of their Earth to be replaced by the Kingdom of their God. These were the Prayers of Declaration that stood alongside the Prayers of Petition.

Even though these Declaration Prayers were at times loud and menacing, they were dwarfed by the sheer size and magnitude of the Throne of God. Every one of Heaven's windows, doors, pallets and crates reduced even the strongest of these prayers to mere mortal endeavours.

As the Prayers of Hope gathered at the throne, we saw some get instantly exchanged for almost all that they requested. In my case, it wasn't to be.

As I stood, before the Throne of Grace about to take my place immediately before the Father of Lights, I felt a Presence surround me that seemed to know something far beyond what my sender could even have known. Even though Faith had sent me, I could feel myself being read, adjusted and changed by the Presence that accompanied me.

I was born in haste, yet this Presence, this Holy Spirit was not. It hadn't just arrived - it had been sent - sent to re-adjust every prayer prayed in sincerity; to conform every prayer to the Will and Purposes of God.

My Sender knew that this would happen. It was all apart of the greater plans of God. The Spirit would help us in our weaknesses. Rom 8:26-27 says so.

"We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the Saints in accordance with Gods Will."

This was all part of the plan. I would be launched in hope and gazumped by Heaven. The Holy Spirit would alloy the tin of my prayer with the platinum of His Will. He would become my Intercessor, my Go Between, the Great Interpreter, my Editor in Chief, my Ghost Writer.

I looked around me to see the Wing-like Prayers of Praise and Worship, the Paratroopers of Declaration and the common workers of the Prayers of Petition and Request. I looked behind me to see the Intercessor, the Holy Spirit - His Presence towering over all of us, guiding us into all truth and godliness.

I was, before the Holy Spirit came along, a prayer for shoes. Not any pair of shoes but walking boots. I was to submit the request form at the Throne of Grace to enable my Sender to go walking across the dales with two old school friends who'd recently been in touch. Financial difficulties called me to active duty. The shoes would create a bridge of friendship upon which the Love of God could easily be shared.

But to no avail. The shoes never showed. The plans to go walking never succeeded, the connection was never made. Within a week the financial situation was made even worse by my Sender's car failing its MOT leaving him to catch the bus to work for an entire month.

On the last day his eyes glanced across at the paper the woman next to him was reading. The Instructor's job immediately caught his attention and he scribbled down the number before the page had turned. He got the job. Within a month, two staff members had made his church their home and both of them began to assist in the Church's Mercy Home for young woman brought low by life's misfortunes. It was there that they both led two woman in great need to Jesus Christ.

I prayed for shoes. The Holy Spirit turned me around and I became a prayer for a new job and a change of career.

If it wasn't for me, even though misguided and misdirected, there would have been no change - no new job, no extra help for the Mercy Home and no one won to Jesus.

I may be half baked, but with the power of the Holy Spirit, I am the key to your future.

If you pray God will answer.

http://www.themindmap.tv/video/i-am-a-prayer/

Happy 12th Birthday, Google

2010-09-27T02:40:00.000-07:00

Happy 12th Birthday, Google

It is hard to believe it is only 12 years since Google hit our screens and now we commonly use the verb to google, although not officially in the dictionary it probably will be soon. Think of all the other Google applications we use every day such as Blogger, Docs, Calendar, just to name a few that some of us think we can't do without. What will another twelve years bring?

Shall I shan't I? and other activities

2010-09-22T14:28:00.002-07:00

My domain name has to be renewed in December, if I don't renew it will no longer be caribooponderer.com but caribooponderer.blogspot.com and I will have saved a few dollars. I have not blogged much for a long time. I guess I could see what this winter brings but blogging was a hobby when I had absolutely nothing else to do up north but now my life is a bit fuller I am not that inspired. I still read others blogs and comment occasionally but the blogging fever has left me so I am not sure really if I will drop the blog altogether, but I am somewhat attached to it and the friends I have made since September 2006 when I started it. I probably will let the domain name lapse and revert to blogspot and see if I can be inspired to write anything. I generally like to be informative rather than relate the details of my everyday life although I do do that sometimes. I love to research and would be inspired if somebody asked me something that I could find out details for them.

For example I was talking to a friend from up north today who shared that the church there has dropped down to 15 people and no pastor and where could she get some help with sermons and so on. So I was able to send her links to audio sermons, text sermons on any topic and helps for house churches. Most of you would know how to find such stuff but my friend barely knows how to send email so she was happy to have the help. Plus she was sent an attachment she didn't know how to download so I had her forward the email to me I downloaded it and copied and pasted into an email and sent it back.

I have been busy with my computer recently though and have created a web page for a friend who is going into her own consulting business. I am pleased with the outcome Chris Drummond Counselling Services and it appears to be working well on several browsers.

In April the church we are going to now is going to do a course on spritual gifts and since I wrote a manual on that many many years ago, although I don't have it anymore, I offered to put something together. So that will keep me busy. I am also working my way through a book by Graham Cooke called Approaching the Heart of Prophecy which is very in-depth and has assignments which are a challenge. I have been involved in prophetic ministry for almost 30 years but feel that now is another time of growth for me. We have been visiting a friend of ours in Kamloops who has a home group where prophetic people meet to learn and practice and that has been rewarding especially as I have been able to encourage others in what God is saying to them. Christian prophetic ministry is not foretelling the future but to bring encouragement and comfort to the listener. When we came to this church, a Pentecostal, I told the pastor that I would not prophecy until he knew me for some time and only when he gave the go ahead. A few Sundays ago I wrote down what I felt I had received and showed him just before the service and he said that he would make time for me to share it which I did and later on he got up to preach and it was on the same subject and similar words. The two following weeks that happened also, although a different preacher, so I was blessed in that God has confirmed my credentials with this church. Sometimes I write down something in my journal and don't know who it is for or when to give it and have to wait until impressed to share it. So I thought I would share one because it ministered to me and there may be someone out there who needs to hear something encouraging today.

Firstly let me tell you how I go about receiving a word, or at least this one, I choose something to think about and ask God to speak through it. In this case I was sitting at my computer with my small stack of vitamins to take with a cup of tea and this is what came to mind and I wrote it down in my journal, I hope it blesses someone.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that and you think it makes you well, strong and resistant. Maybe in the natural world it does but in the world of the spirit it takes total immersion, total submission and total rest. It is not in the length of your prayers or the amount of time you spend reading your Bible, although good pursuits it is not these that bring you into a deep relationship with me. Resting in my love, knowing that I know all about you, your triumphs and your failings, your good days and your bad. When you feel unlovable I love you more for it is in your unloveliness that I can show you my love. So beloved rest and know that you are safe in my love and nothing can separate you from me. I knew everything you would do on the day I died for you and I loved you then.

This song I can listen to over and over

2010-09-06T20:22:00.001-07:00

Bears having fun

2010-08-31T11:15:00.000-07:00

These are pictures taken at a Work Site in the northern part of Alberta at one of the oil fields. These were taken on a Monday morning when they arrived at work at 6:45 a.m. It's not at all unusual to have bears, elk, deer, moose wondering around the site, but this was really neat catching these characters having fun ... I guess they think this is their own playground and just have fun. All the guys and the bosses watched for over an hour until they all left... and kinda got shooed away.

Bear trouble again

2010-08-26T20:10:00.001-07:00

We have bears again they are coming down for the fish and fruit. Not as bad as where we used to live but I still don't like it. Mamma bear and three cubs on the road this morning outside our park, the police were trying to get them to go back off the road. A big old male wandered through yesterday and a couple of yearlings sighted across the road.

I went walking a couple of evenings ago with one of my new walking buddies and we saw a bear up an apple tree a bit too close for me although she laughed at my fears, I wish I was more confident around them but they are so unpredictable. Taken to carrying my bear banger, it sounds like a shotgun but doesn't hurt them.

Off to Calgary early tomorrow morning, doing a round trip run and then on to Vancouver on Sunday, helping move son #3.