Sourdough Bread

Just the mention of Sourdough Bread conjures up memories that take me back to 1986 when I began to make it for our little family. Hannah Beth was six months old when I got the ‘starter’ for the yummy bread. Wish I could remember for sure, but it came from either my friend, Ninkey McCarty, or from my mother-in-law. Either way, for all these years, I’ve kept Sourdough Starter in my refrigerator.

You’re supposed to ‘feed’ the starter every week, then use one cup of it to make a batch of bread and refrigerate the rest. The ‘feeding’ is warm water, sugar, and instant potato flakes. I’d say that if you took a swig of the mixture you’d get a little tipsy!

About ten years ago I stopped making bread, but would feed the starter periodically just in case I decided to resume the wonderful habit of serving that homemade yumminess.

One time a friend told me that I shouldn’t store the starter with a lid on it, but instead should put a paper towel over it while it’s in the refrigerator so it can 'breathe.' I'd never heard that before but tried it anyway. Well, that didn’t work out too well because I forgot about it and it dried up in the bottom of the jar. Oh no! Now I’ll have to start all over and that was from my original 1986 starter!!! I started over. But to make sure it was still from my original starter, I scraped the dried stuff from the jar (that sounds disgusting but it isn’t) and put it into the new batch. Hence, I basically still have the original!

While cleaning out and reorganizing my cupboards last week, I found an ingredient that might be helpful in getting my starter active again. Moonshine. 

Now before you get all upset with this preacher’s wife for having homemade moonshine in the house, let me explain...
Three years ago when we moved from Alcoa to Cleveland, Tennessee we were given a gift. It was a little pint jar of Moonshine. The bearer of the gift makes it in his garage. I didn’t know what we’d do with it, so shoved it in the cupboard when we moved. I’d pull it out whenever I cleaned but always put it back........WAY in the back!

See? That isn’t so awful, now is it? Do you use Nyquil? Or cough syrup? Is that the same difference? Just sayin’.

Back to the bread starter...
I pulled the starter from our fridge, stirred two tablespoons of moonshine into it and put it back in the fridge. Yesterday, I fed the starter like usual, but I put some yeast in the warm water, thinking it’d give a little kick to make it active again. (like the moonshine wasn’t kick enough!!)

This morning I went into the kitchen and saw that my starter was ready for use (it fizzes and kind of moves around in the jar) so I made a batch of bread. It remains to be seen if things turn out the way they used to, but it gives me a smile to think I’m still using basically the same starter from 29 years ago!

If it doesn’t work, I’m out of luck because I threw away the rest of the Kickapoo Joy Juice (aka moonshine)!

P.S. If this turns out well, in my next blog I’ll post the recipes for original starter and the bread.




Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

"O say, can you sing?"

The National Anthem.
At this year’s Super Bowl, Idina Menzel performed it beautifully. My favorite Super Bowl performance will always be when Whitney Houston sang with so much power, if you weren’t inspired...you needed a toe tag!!! 

There have been poor performances of our nation’s inspiring anthem. Some even seemed to me as though they were mockeries. (think Roseanne Barr) And there have been efforts that were very good.

I’ve heard a special needs person sing it. It was exceptional. Not a dry eye in the place. And it was done flawlessly.

When I am in a place where the “Star Spangled Banner” is performed, I immediately honor our nation’s flag by placing my hand over my heart. In my opinion, everyone should give our Stars and Stripes that honor.

The only time I haven’t done that is when I’ve been performing it myself. Know why? Because my hand is usually shaking so I have to hold the microphone with both hands (as my knees applaud my bravery)!

Once I was invited to sing the National Anthem at a UTC Mocs basketball game. That same night, alumni Dominique and Gerald Wilkins, both of whom were playing professionally by that time, were to be honored at the beginning of the game...then I’d sing. I’ve done this sort of thing before, at graduations, local baseball and football games. This shouldn’t be any different.

Then the moment came...
I walked out to center court, microphone in hand. As I stood there, the announcer asked everyone to rise. Suddenly, my mind went blank! B L A N K !!! I couldn’t remember the lyrics to our National Anthem!

My mind was spinning, blood rushed to my head. The only lyrics and melody I could think of was “The Lord’s Prayer.” I could feel panic. Real panic. Was I going to faint?!? I’ve been nervous singing before, but never thought I’d faint! 

Then, as quickly as the lyrics left my mind, the words came as I opened my mouth! I sang “The Star Spangled Banner” without missing one note or word! That was it. When I finished, I walked back, handed over the mic and breathed a sigh of relief.

That long pause...
the one that felt like an eternity. Do you think anyone noticed? Was it obvious that I’d forgotten the words? I asked a friend of mine who was at the game if the long ‘pre-song’ silence was extremely noticeable. He said he just thought I was waiting for the crowd to stand and get quiet.

Yep. That’s it. I was waiting for the crowd. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.


Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

My Sister, My Friend: Vangie

Today marks the second anniversary of the day my Vangie went to Heaven. It was unexpected. And still unreal to me. She’d had a stomach virus and was hospitalized for a few days, then sent home. I’d planned to go to Ohio to be with her in the hospital and she convinced me not to because she wanted me to “...wait until we can have some fun together.” So, I didn’t go. Oh, how I wish I had...but ‘coulda-shoulda-woulda’ is too clear now.

She was released from the hospital and recuperating at home, but she began to have severe pain in her abdomen. Next thing we knew, she’d been admitted to the hospital again and in emergency surgery. Ruptured bowel. Her immune system had been weak for many, many years...and this was just too much for her to body to fight. She was put on a ventilator in surgery. It was unhooked two years ago tonight. The nurse said it would be about ten to fifteen minutes. But just like the ‘cruise director’ she was...Vangie lasted four more hours. Her terms. Her timing. Gotta love it that she did that. One of my brothers said she was ‘bossy’ like that! LOL!

I’ve been weepy today. Thought a lot about Vangie. About how much I miss her. How much I love her still...

But I’ve also thought of some funny things. She could get the giggles at the worst time and then I’d start! We were a bit irreverent at times. Vangie and I lived together in 1973 and 1974, sharing a trailer in a little town called Wilmore, Kentucky. I came in from work one cold afternoon to find Vangie huddled in the corner of our sofa, feet on the cushion, still wearing her coat, with her purse still on her arm. She was terrified.

What was the object of her terror? What had her frozen on the corner of the sofa? A mouse trap...with a mouse that she watched struggling as it moved from this earth to that ‘great big hunk of cheese in the sky.’ The trap sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor snapped as she walked in the door. She ran to the sofa and squirmed as she watched it die.

When I walked in the door, she was terrified...of a dead mouse. A mouse that could in no way harm her. Dead as a doornail. She was waiting for me to come home and dispose of the terror. I pulled out a garbage bag, turned it inside out and put my hand down in it so I could pick the mouse and trap up without touching it.

If you could have seen her face...priceless!

She and I had a lot in common. One of those was something I just learned about last month.

In 1995, I was preparing to move from Virginia to Tennessee and had just finished serving on an Emmaus Walk. As we team members were packing up our things and loading our cars, someone suggested making a circle in our cabin so they could pray for me since this was going to be our last time together. After prayer time, we hugged and cried...saying our goodbyes. It was tough. I left first, and turned around to take one last look. My friends were still crying. So I moved toward the door, then said, “hey girls, check this out” and promptly mooned them. Yes, they stopped crying. Ha! Loved the looks on their faces!!!

Last month I learned that Vangie shot the moon to a bunch of girls after they ‘kidnapped’ her along with a couple of other ladies at a church camp. I’m not sure the circumstances because I think it’s some sort of ‘secret sorority’ but I just know that my sister topped off the night by mooning them all! That was her last time at camp. She gave them a lasting memory! Got to the bottom of things!!!

Somehow, it didn’t surprise me when I heard about it. After all, we are Lena’s daughters...and Lena had a funny/silly side that would come out now and again. Vangie’s husband mooned Mother on High Street in downtown Columbus, Ohio.

Vangie and Gary (in the back seat), and Joe and I, were in our VW Bug while Mother and Daddy were being driven by our brother in their car. We pulled up next to each other at a light and Gary mooned Mother!!! The funniest part about it was that she turned to Daddy and said, “What is he doing, Bob?” Daddy laughed till he cried! Mother couldn’t figure it out until we got to our destination and Vangie told her what happened.

I’m just glad he rolled down the window on our car before he did it.

She and I were close. Unusually close. I don’t know too many sisters who have the kind of relationship we had. We loved each other dearly and could drive each other nuts! I have loads of memories that I won’t share here right now. But you need to know that my sister was an awesome, loving, funny, happy, and devoted woman...to God, and to her family. She was one-of-a-kind. 

I’m glad she was my sister.

Each blog I post is closed with a particular phrase. Just for the record...Vangie did that every day of her too-short life.

Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

Colonoscopies can be revealing...

Gastroenterologists. I haven't had a colonoscopy in over ten years. 

No wonder. Who in the world ‘likes’ to have a colonoscopy? Well, I had one this week and everything 'came out okay.'

Get it? Everything came out okay? Never mind.

I like it when my husband has one because he’s hilarious afterward! Once, we watched “The Sound Of Music” the night before one of his colonoscopies. He woke up singing, “...the hills are alive with the sound of music...” and I learned he also sang it during his procedure. I asked the doctor if he joined Joe in singing the sound track, to which he replied that he didn’t have time to join in because Joe didn’t make it to the second line! Ha!

Another time, Joe was fixated on the doctor’s shoes. They were the latest in athletic footwear and Joe even talked about them while the doctor consulted with us following his procedure. (He was still just a little drunk.)

Once, when I was being fitted with my new eyeglass frames, the optician mentioned that my husband really loved me.

What? How would she know?

She said, “My husband had a colonoscopy the same day as yours and they woke up in rooms right next to one another. He kept telling the nurse that his wife was a ‘wonderful woman! You’ll love her!’ he said.” 

She proceeded to tell me that Joe told anyone who would listen just how much he loved his wife!

Now, friends, I think that’s pretty cool when a hubby is totally soused and talks wonderful about his wife!!!

Just for the record, I think he’s pretty awesome, too!



Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

Snoring...

Sleep Apnea. Lots of people have been diagnosed with it. My husband has it. I have it. We both use C-pap machines when we sleep at night because the snoring would cause a mild earthquake in our cul-de-sac.

If someone broke into our house in the middle of the night, and saw us wearing our funny masks, they’d think we were aliens! With the hoses and the face masks, we both look like extras in the bar scene of the first ‘Star Wars’ movie. (And if we got frisky wearing those things, we’d likely electrocute one another!)

I fall asleep in strange places. When I was working in morning radio, I’d easily fall asleep in the evenings. Church? Yes. Company? Yes, sometimes. If we were in a restaurant and it got too quiet, I’d fall asleep. No kidding! Once my husband and some friends left me sitting in a Wendy’s...with my elbow on the table and my chin propped on my hand. He wanted to see how long it would take me to wake up and realize I was alone. Trouble is, I wasn’t alone. The restaurant was full after a Friday night football game! People began snickering as I drowsily looked up to see Joe and friends standing outside the window, staring at me.

It wasn’t funny to me at the time, but I’m older now and have loosened up a little. A little.

Once I had the privilege to listen to Louie Giglio teach at The Cove (The Billy Graham Training Center) in North Carolina. He was very interesting. Really, he was! But we’d all been sitting a while and the seminar was nearing the end. Louie invited us to bow our heads and close our eyes as he prayed.

Either he prayed a really long time, or I was extremely sleepy. All I know is that I put my head down on my arm, which was propped up on the seat in front of me...fell asleep and woke myself up snoring!!!

When the prayer was done, I whispered to the lady who was sitting in the seat next to where I’d been resting my head and apologized for falling asleep. She looked at me gratefully and said, “I’m so glad you’re okay! I thought you were choking and couldn’t breathe! When you gasped, I realized you were okay!”

On a recent trip to Ohio, I’d had too little sleep before hitting the road. When I got to Williamsburg, Kentucky I knew I needed to nap in my car for a bit...and planned to, after using the restroom.

When I travel, I like to use hotel restrooms. They’re cleaner and nicer than filling stations and fast-food places. I started doing that when I was potty-training Hannah when we were traveling. Plus, when I’m on the road alone, I feel a bit safer going into a hotel to use the facilities. In 30 years I’ve only had one hotel manager tell me the restrooms weren’t for public use. I was desperate and offered him money, but STILL had to go to McDonalds!

But I digress...

At this particular stop, I used the restroom at the Williamsburg Inn. There are several stalls, so I slipped into one of them and...well...rested. Seriously. I rested! Unintentionally, I fell asleep sitting on the toilet!!! I must have been asleep for 10 or 15 minutes and woke myself up making the most horrible snoring noises you can imagine!

Who knows how awful it sounded before I woke myself up! And bathrooms are notorious for their acoustics!

Some lady might have come in and heard it, thinking the woman in that stall was really having a tough time of it! Ha!

When telling my daughter about my ‘nap’ later that day, I mentioned that someone might have thought there could be two people in that stall and...well...you know. (Or you’d know if your mind was in the gutter.)

Hannah told me there was no way one could think that anything was going on in that stall with two people because she’s “...heard me snore and it’s a horrible, unmistakeable sound!”

Well, there you have it. I guess I’m going to have to take my C-pap machine with me EVERYWHERE I go!

Yes. Even there, if I’m tired!



Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

No green thumb on MY hand!

My mother raised beautiful violets. She had 'the gift' when it came to plants. Her youngest daughter, however, did not receive that gift. In fact, her house is where most plants come to die. Who knows how many violets I've been given during hospital stays or as gifts that met the same slow death. It wasn’t that I was TRYING to kill them...

So, thanks to Mother’s instructions, I would carefully water the violets in the proper way and would place them to enjoy their best light. But each ill-fated violet was sort of pitiful when the last bloom would fall off. Just like all the others, the plant would sit there. No growth. No more blooms. Each one was just another fuzzy-leaved green plant that looked like it may have smoked cigarettes when it was younger because it's growth was so very stunted.

My hairdresser, Kirk Hemboldt, visited me at at the hospital (after my knee replacement) while I was 'under the influence' of the morphine in my pain pump. To everyone who came in my room to visit, my daughter tells me I’d hold up the button and instruct everyone to “...say hello to my little friend!” I’d never remember much of any conversation after that.

Now Kirk and I have been friends for a very long time, and we talk about all sorts of things. All sorts! So who knows what I might have said to him in that hospital room. I do remember his gift…a violet filled with blooms in a beautiful little dish. Obviously, in all the things we’d talk about over the years, I’d never told him I was a serial plant murderer. If I had, I’m sure he’d never have given me custody of that innocent, sweet violet! It really was beautiful, and I knew it would eventually meet the same fate as every other violet I’d known.

Well, I think my luck may be changing! This morning as I dutifully watered my houseplants (that always seem to be hanging on for dear life) I noticed a single bloom on my violet! I was so excited that I took a picture of it! This was a FIRST for me! That was this morning. Tonight, I checked it before crawling into bed and it’s still there! Miracles never cease!

One of my favorite comedians is Mitch Hedberg. He once said, “All my silk plants died because I forgot to pretend to water them.”

That sounds like a line I need to borrow for my stand-up comedy routine...giving Hedberg credit for it, of course.



Remember, if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!

Rest in Peace, Robin

Robin Williams.
Iconic. Comedian. Actor. Generous. Beloved by millions…and had all the world could offer. Depressed. And now he’s gone because his sadness overcame him.

Just watching Robin Williams in action, you’d never have imagined he had a problem with depression, would you?

If you know me at all, you might be surprised to know that I began struggling with depression when our little family made a move in 1991. I thought it was just sadness because of leaving what I'd known and loved for 11 years…not being able to find a job in radio there because the one station in town was all sown up with home-town boys…and the nearest place to look was a town that would have cost me more to drive to than I'd have been paid.

I'd also been taking fertility drugs again, trying to give our daughter a sibling. My track record wasn't too good, but I'd succeeded once out of several pregnancies (one a set of twins). All of a sudden, a problem was found that brought that pursuit to a dead stop. I was devastated. I sunk a little lower.

I spent four of the longest years of my life trying to figure out what was wrong with me. I prayed. A lot.

Then we moved again. I thought my problems were over. I loved where we lived…was able to get back into radio…and, most of all, I had this amazing husband who loved me through the worst time in my life. And he still loves me!

But my problems weren't over. Clinical depression had set in, and in my ignorance…figuring it was a spiritual problem…I ignored the signs. When I saw my gynecologist, he and I had a heart-to-heart. After he prescribed an antidepressant, I never had it filled. My thought was that I was a weak Christian and needed to draw closer to God. Seriously!

As a Christian woman, I thought if I was lacking joy in my life, I needed to do whatever it took to get back on the right track. Taking one Bible study…teaching another…participating in prayer time, quiet time, as much as possible. Yet I was still sinking.

I finally did what my doctor lovingly said after my second appointment declaring that my problem was spiritual: “Shut up and take your pills.” He knew me well. He was a Christian, too. And he was a friend. He got pretty blunt with me. Convincing me to try taking the antidepressant for three months, I began feeling like “me” again. We worked with the dosage. Finally, we found what worked for me.

And, spiritually? I’ve had moments in the desert and moments on the mountain-top. Thanks be to God, He’s been faithful to me even when I haven’t to Him. I love Jesus. And He loves me through every moment of my life…no matter what that moment might bring. I’m not a weak Christian because I receive treatment for depression. That used to be my mindset. Now, I’m thankful that God gave knowledge to those who developed the medications I need to keep me on an even keel. This wasn’t a spiritual problem for me. My hubby compared it to the fact that I had low thyroid and needed Synthroid to help it be normal. Just like when I found out I was pregnant with Hannah and needed the HCG hormone in order to keep my body from rejecting what was growing inside my uterus…I needed help. And, thanks be to God, I got it.

There was no reason to be as secretive as I first thought I should be about my depression. You know what happened when I began to talk about my treatment? I found out there were other people in the same boat! I wasn’t alone at all!

Don’t let the enemy of our souls rob you of real joy in your life. And don’t let depression rob you either.

Maybe you’ve read about Robin Williams and all of a sudden, depression is a topic that’s being talked about. Let some good come of this to honor his memory.

Do you know the Signs of Depression? I went to The Mayo Clinic website so I could share them with you…

Although depression may occur only one time during your life, usually people have multiple episodes of depression. During these episodes, symptoms occur most of the day, nearly every day and may include:
• Feelings of sadness, emptiness or unhappiness
• Angry outbursts, irritability or frustration, even over small matters
• Loss of interest or pleasure in normal activities, such as sex
• Sleep disturbances, including insomnia or sleeping too much
• Tiredness and lack of energy, so that even small tasks take extra effort
• Changes in appetite — often reduced appetite and weight loss, but increased cravings for food and weight gain in some people
• Anxiety, agitation or restlessness — for example, excessive worrying, pacing, hand-wringing or an inability to sit still
• Slowed thinking, speaking or body movements
• Feelings of worthlessness or guilt, fixating on past failures or blaming yourself for things that are not your responsibility
• Trouble thinking, concentrating, making decisions and remembering things
• Frequent thoughts of death, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts or suicide
• Unexplained physical problems, such as back pain or headaches
For some people, depression symptoms are so severe that it's obvious something isn't right. Other people feel generally miserable or unhappy without really knowing why.
To learn more, go to:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/basics/symptoms/CON-20032977

And now (more than ever) let me remind you yet again that if you have a pulse, you have a purpose…so make your life count!