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This theme observance is supposed to repeat every year, whether or not it does due to the time restraints of the webmistress.....

This year my beautiful #2 daughter-in-law,

Bethany Winona Harty (Siuslaw HS, OR - '94) of OH, also known as "My Favorite Person in the Whole World", helped me with the choices for it - Christmas carol, Simon Dewey's painting, "His Name Shall Be Called Wonderful", quotation, graphics, and color. Thanks, Bethany!

With a house full of delightful company - including five adorable grandchildren ranging in age from ten to two - my time is extraordinarily limited, and my concentration level has dropped to waaay below zero at the moment. Therefore, I'm saving practically all personal correspondence, as well as anything time consuming (namely images or anything causing me to have to think), for later editions this week.

In fact, even at this very moment, I'm forgetting something critical I meant to be adding right now. YIKES!!! Thank y'all for your patience and understanding!

Happy Birthday today to our Christmas Eve Two-Fer: James Gay ('57) and Ann W. Hutcheson ('57)! and Happy Birthday tomorrow to our Christmas Day Three-Fer: Patsy Bloxom Meider ('57), Doug Dickinson ('69) of VA AND my friend Anica Thomas Penrod (Pine Forest HS, NC - '97) of NC!

Three things in life that, once gone, never come back

1. Time
2. Words
3. Opportunity

Three things in life that can destroy a person

1. Anger
2. Pride
3. Unforgiveness

Three things in life that you should never lose

1. Hope
2. Peace
3. Honesty

Three things in life that are most valuable

1. Love
2. Family & Friends
3. Kindness

Three things in life that are never certain

1. Fortune
2. Success
3. Dreams

Three things that make a person

1. Commitment
2. Sincerity
3. Hard work

Three things that are truly constant -

Father - Son - Holy Spirit

I ask the Lord to bless you, as I pray for you today,
to guide you and protect you,
as you go along your way.
God's love is always with you,
God's promises are true.
And when you give God all your cares,
you know God will see you through.

If this doesn't make you laugh out loud, I suggest you consult your physician. Thanks so much, Glenn!

With my best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. This video sure puts us in the mood.

I really enjoyed the letter that was in today's newsletter. Here is the real story behind that letter:

http://www.snopes.com/business/bank/takethat.asp

Unfortunately, the letter sounded too good to be true so I checked it out.

It is still a very important letter. Even if the author of the letter is based on a lie, the contents of the letter are based on truths.

I watch as little television as possible, and when I do watch I prefer things of substance like what is presented on the History Channel, PBS, etc. It seems like each time I learn or discover something that I didn't know. Last night was no exception. I didn't see the beginning of the show, but I saw most of it. It was about the future of gaming .....virtual reality. A virtual reality is where someone becomes an avator (computer generated character). These avators exist in a virtual reality where they meet other avators. In this virtual reality a "World" exists where real money is being spent to buy things in this virtual reality. Actual well known businesses own part of this virtual reality and participate. The avators (computer generated characters) are bought and sold. Real estate property is bought and sold. It really seems strange to find out that there are people mortgaging their homes in order to buy real estate in a virtual reality existence. It showed an avator purchasing clothes from a "virtual reality" store. I forget the store name but it is a very famous clothing store in the real world and this is their "virtual world" store. I do remember that Coca Cola and McDonalds are there. I guess you might sum it as saying that it would be possible to "live" in this virtual reality world. The scary thought is how many may just do that.....

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year !!

Edna Whitcomb Harrison

Thanks, Edna! YIKESARONI! Those are very scary scenarios, indeed - which I had only heard discussed in the very sketchiest of hints before!

Carol Dear,

Thanks for pushing out my inquiry about fruit cakes. Let's see what happens. I'll just bet if people were REALLY honest, we'll find more than just the two of us who are closet fruit cake lovers. Anyway, we've come clean and are out of the closet, and I know I, for one, feel like I've had a huge weight lifted off of my chest. Hummm......maybe that weight was really the fruit cake and it wasn't my chest at all, it was my STOMACH!???

Happy Holidays everyone,

Chandler

Oh, I think you're right, Chandler Darlin'! And I think you'll prefer their recipes to mine, which were heavy on the nuts, light on the fruits, and totally devoid of alcohol.

My grandmother said a perfect fruitcake should really be made in November of one year to be eaten in December the following year, and she baked them in old cookie tins (like the ones Danish butter cookies come in), turned them out of the tins, wrapped them in brandy-soaked cloth and stuck them back in the tins and covered them tightly and stored them in a cool place. Once a week she pulled them all out and put "a wee dram"-- actually a full shot-- of brandy over each one. By the time they were eaten they were quite volatile, and some people actually lit their fruit cake/plum pudding/Christmas cake aflame with a little more brandy and a match when they brought it to the table after dinner. (No smoke alarms in those days!) Hard sauce involves butter, confectioner's sugar, and brandy beaten together, if I remember correctly. The Irish often put an almond-paste (marzipan) frosting on fruit cake. I loved my grandmother's fruit cake. It was never quite the same twice, since she used an assortment of dried and glaceed fruit and nuts depending on what was available. I remember her creaming the butter and sugar and adding the eggs, and the flour with the spices, and the brandy, and stirring in the fruit and nuts; there had to be more fruit and nuts than other ingredients; the eggs and flour and sugar and butter and brandy were there to coat the fruit and nuts and hold them together. It was baked for a relatively long time in a relatively cool oven. She must have made 30 or so of them every year. Commercial fruitcake seems to involve far too much cake relative to the amount of fruit and nuts, and I suspect brandy flavouring rather than actual brandy. There is a recipe for Irish Christmas Cake on astray.com which looks like it might produce something a bit like my grandmother's cake.

From Sepi Dinwiddie Prichard ('58) of NC - 12/20/07 - "Fruitcake for

Chandler (Nelms - Hampton HS - '63 - of MD) and anyone else.":

Carol.....

I have a fruitcake recipe that my mother used when I was a child; it has been in the Dinwiddie family more years than I have. I remember quite vividly begging to stay home from school so that I could help with the preparations. One can find many reasons to stay home from school, but this was the best. In those days preparations took one whole day, nuts did not come shelled and bagged like they do nowadays. Usually one or two neighbor ladies came to help, and it was their story telling as much as the preparation that stirred the excitement of the beginnings of Christmas.

Fruitcakes were always prepared just before or just after Thanksgiving so they would have time to "cure" in their "blankets" of cheesecloth that had been soaked in Apple Brandy. Mom's fruitcakes were famous, this recipe makes about 16 pounds of fruitcake, and the neighbors helped willingly because each knew her help and the donation of the use of her oven would bring the reward of a gift of a fruitcake come Christmas Week.

This recipe is for a dark fruitcake and one with finely diced fruit so there are no hunks of fruit, my mouth is watering, I have made them myself about four times, and everyone that said they didn't like fruitcake has always changed their mind after tasting this one. It should be served sliced thin. I don't remember any hard sauce but that sounds like a good addition. The finished product was always stored in tightly covered metal cans, and when mother would open the tin, to add more Brandy to make sure the cakes didn't dry out, the smell alone would make you drool, in front of your best friend.

Mother and Daddy always made sure the cake lasted until their anniversary on March 4th, when we always ate the last of the cake after dinner. Daddy's comment was always..".Ahhhhhhhh...that was worth the wait !" And then he would finish up his strong cup of coffee to wash down the crumbs collected from his plate.

I might add that this was the only time alcohol was allowed in the Dinwiddie house, for fruitcake Daddy broke the rule. Fruit cake is good ANYTIME of the year.

If you are interested in having a copy of the recipe, e-mail me at 01.sepi@gmail.com. Include your name, and address and I will be overjoyed to pass along this tried and time honored recipe. For those of you wondering why I will only mail you a copy, well, it is after all, a "family recipe."

Merry Christmas....

Sepi a.k.a. Dimples

In reference to the fruit cake recipe, I have one that some of you may have that is even better (in my opinion) than fruit cake. It is Orange Candy Cake....yummmm. An oldie recipe - Mom makes it every Christmas.

Peace & Blessing,
Cheryl

1/2 lb. butter or margarine 1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups sugar 3 c. plain flour, sifted
5 eggs 8 oz. pkg. dates, cut in small pieces
1 cup angel flake coconut
8 oz. orange gum candy, cut in small pieces
½ cup buttermilk 1 cup pecans
1 level tsp. soda (add to buttermilk) 1/2 cup black walnuts

Cream butter and sugar well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add vanilla, flour and milk (batter will be heavy). In another bowl mix together candy, dates, coconut and nuts. Sprinkle with a little flour to keep from sticking together. Then add to first mixture and stir well. Put in greased & floured tube or bunt pan and cake in 250 degree oven for 2 ½ hour or until done.

Glaze for Orange Cake

½ box confectionary sugar
½ cup fresh orange juice

Blend together well and pour over cake while still warm. Store in refrigerator overnight before serving.

From Christine Wilson Starkman ('68) of CA - 12/22/07 - "Re: 12/22/07 - Pat-a-Pan":

From one of my Famous Marines, Herb Hice of MI, who served in the Pacific Theater during WWII - 12/22/07 - "Dear Carol / Dimples, Here is a wonderful list of Christmas Gifts for Guys.":

Dear Carol / Dimples

Here are some good gift idea's for the men in your life. It don't matter if he already has one, they would always love to have a SPARE !!!

Read the handy reminder's in the list below.

I like #4, I always told Gloria to NEVER buy me a bathrobe, I never wore one !!! Also I never wear an undershirt, just shorts with loud silly patterns so if I have to run outside without my pants, my neighbors will be SHOCKED !!!

Herbie

Christmas is just around the corner so it's time for me to share some gift ideas for those special men in your life! Buying gifts for men is not nearly as complicated as it is for women. Follow these rules and you should have no problems.

Rule #1: When in doubt -- buy him a cordless drill. It does not matter if he already has one. I have a friend who owns 17 and he has yet to complain. As a man, you can never have too many cordless drills. For that matter any power tool is a good choice. He may not need it, or know what it does, but it will look good hung on the peg board in the garage.

Rule #2: If you cannot afford a cordless drill, buy him anything with the word ratchet or socket in it. Men love saying those two words. "Hey George, can I borrow your ratchet?" "OK. Bye-the-way, are you through with my 3/8-inch socket yet?"

Rule #3: If you are really, really broke, buy him anything for his car. A 99-cent ice scraper, a small bottle of deicer or something to hang from his rear view mirror. Men love gifts for their cars.

Rule #4: Do not buy men socks. Do not buy men ties and never buy men bathrobes. If God had wanted men to wear bathrobes, he wouldn't have invented Jockey shorts.

Rule #5: You can buy men new remote controls to replace the ones they have worn out. If you have a lot of money buy your man a big-screen TV with the little picture in the corner. Watch him go wild as he flips, and flips, and flips.

Rule #6: Do not buy a man any of those fancy liqueurs. If you do, it will sit in a cupboard for 23 years. Real men drink whiskey or beer.

Rule #7: Do not buy any man industrial-sized canisters of after shave or deodorant. We do not stink -- we are earthy.

Rule #8: Buy men label makers. Almost as good as cordless drills. Within a couple of weeks there will be labels absolutely everywhere. "Socks. Shorts. Cups. Saucers. Door. Lock. Sink." You get the idea. No one knows why.

Rule #9: Never buy a man anything that says "some assembly required" on the box. It will ruin his Special Day and he will always have parts left over.

Rule #10: Good places to shop for men include Northwest Iron Works, Parr Lumber, Home Depot, John Deere, Valley RV Center, and Les Schwab Tire. (NAPA Auto Parts and Sears Clearance Centers are also excellent men's stores. It doesn't matter if he doesn't know what it is. "From NAPA Auto, eh? Must be something I need. Hey! Isn't this a starter for a '68 Ford Fairlane? Wow! Thanks.")

Rule #11: Men enjoy danger. That's why they never cook - but they will barbecue. Get him a monster barbecue with a 100-pound propane tank. Tell him the gas line leaks. "Oh the thrill! The challenge! Who wants a hamburger?"

Rule #12: Tickets to a professional sports game (any team within 300 miles) are a smart gift. However, he will not appreciate tickets to "A Retrospective of 19th Century Quilts."

Rule #13: Men love chainsaws. Never, ever, buy a man you love a chainsaw. If you don' t know why - please refer to Rule #8 and what happens when he gets a label maker.

Rule #14: It's hard to beat a really good wheelbarrow or an aluminum extension ladder. Never buy a real man a step ladder. It must be an extension ladder.

Rule #15: Rope. Men love rope. It takes us back to our cowboy origins, or at least The Boy Scouts. Nothing says love like a hundred feet of 3/8" manilla rope.

Rule #16: Clamps. Men can never have enough quick grip clamps. No one knows why

Rule #17: Buy your man Duct Tape. This is a man's most universal repair tool. All men know, if you can't fix it, duct it.

From one of my Famous Marines, Herb Hice of MI, who served in the Pacific Theater during WWII - 12/14/07 - "Dear Carol / Dimples, This is Dog Logic" (#6 in a series of 12):

There's much more to come - next time! Meanwhile, Good Yule - and Merry Christmas!

Y'all take care of each other! TYPHOONS FOREVER! We'll Always Have Buckroe!

"'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring' is the title of a transcription by the English pianist Myra Hess (1890-1965) of the chorale that ends each part
of the cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147 composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. Hess’s transcription was published
in 1926 for piano solo and in 1934 for piano duet, but the transcription itself has since been arranged for various instruments and combinations. Today, it is often performed at wedding ceremonies slowly and reverently, in defiance of the affect suggested by Bach
in his original scoring, for voices with trumpet, oboes, strings, and continuo. Written during his first year in Leipzig, Germany,
this chorale movement is one of Bach’s most enduring works."

Marine Corps Seal clip art courtesy of Herbert Hice of MI - one of my Famous Marines who served in the South Pacific during WWII.
Thanks, Herbie!

Dear Carol / Dimples Something to ponder. Herbie GIGGLES! Thanks, Herbie Darlin'!
		Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a dog.
		-Franklin P. Jones