Earlier this week, I got a wild hair to cook up a big thing of collard greens. Now in order to do this right you need some tasty smoked ham hocks. So while shopping about in my local markets, asking the meat counter guys for them, do you think a ham hock is to be found anywhere. Let me answer that for you, with a resounding NO! The ham hocks are hiding, but the big questions is WHERE!

I can’t quite figure it out. I can find just about anything in these stores from pigs snouts to sow ears and feet, tripe, and even fried pork skins but ham hocks seem to be the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the collard green rainbow.

Finally, with my frustration being at an all time high, I went home defeated, until I remembered in my freezer is a ham bone from a ham I cooked last month. This is why I save these things; you just never know when you might need them at some future date.

So this week success will be mine in making some tasty collard greens!!!

For those of you who have never made them, I’ve included a recipe from the food network. Enjoy!

Gina’s Best Collard Greens Recipe

Happy Cookin’!

Kat and the Kids

It’s funny how small the internet has made this big world of ours. Thirty years ago we were just hearing bout the Atari game system for our televisions. Man did we think we were cool with our space invaders and asteroids, the kids today look at the classic game and scoff at the simplistic nature of the games. Our first ‘personal’ computer was a commodore 64, coupled with a black and white t.v. and a huge phone modem we could log onto bulletin boards. Yes, little ones even back then we had some cool points.

Now we have super computers encased in little boxes, we surf the electronic wave known as the world wide web (www) and frequent sites such as Facebook, MySpace and chat sites. On occasion we run into people that we actually know or whom know someone who knows someone who went to school with someone we knew or know.

Friends and family move half a world away and shoot off an email to give you their new email address so we can ‘keep in touch” our best friend no longer is the next door neighbor, but now might be 3,000 miles away in another state or even country.

When we catch up we do so in a quick fashion, glossing over the trails and tribulations of life to share our glory moments, from marriages and births to the passing of friends and family.

Sometimes I miss the relative anonymity that came with moving and not being found unless we chose to relate where we have run off to, the excitement of writing a note to a friend and receiving a letter in return.

So to all of you who have found my slice of internet heaven… Hiyas! I hope you are doing well … leave a comment to let me know you have found my slice of the net pie!

Kat and the kids

Good lord what was I thinking. I made the mistake of complaining to my family in Seattle that I was missing the warm weather and I’ll be if God didn’t take notice.

We here in So. Cali are going through the first of I’m sure many heat waves, with temperatures rising to a hot 95+ yesterday today is looking even worse, some areas are expecting triple digits, all I can say is Oi, be careful what you wish for because you might just get it.

Having three kids (cats), I am leaving on an air conditioner so that they too can experience some balmy temperatures in doors like I do during my day at work. Ah… such is life of the cat.

Stay cool!

Kat and the Kids

So… it’s tax day, for all of us procrastinators out there, today is the day that we buck up and say well **** time to knuckle down and pay Uncle Sam.

This is the first time in years I have not asked for an extension, but I even filed a day early, you’ve got to love e-filing. I decided this was a year for change so I went out bought turbo tax, sat down with all my various information and muddled through my taxes.

Imagine my surprise… the pot of gold at the end of the tax season rainbow, known as a REFUND! Now my head is spinning on what I can do with this money, do I spend it on frivolous things that I’ve been dreaming about for years, do I spend it on investments with our stock market in the dumps or do I bank it and save it for a rainy day. The latter seems to be the way to go at the moment but at the moment these are all pipe dreams until the money is actually in my account, with the State of California handing out I.O.U.s and the federal government spending the money faster than we can say tax day, I say we don’t count our preverbal chickens until they hatch.

So, here is what I would suggest you do… get on the stick and file your taxes!

Happy Tax Day

Kat and the Kids

It’s that time of year again, lent is nearly over and the Cadbury bunny is around the preverbal corner. It’s the time of year that we over indulge in racks of lamb, ham potato salad, boiled colored eggs and more candy than even Willy Wonka can produce with his staff of oompa loompas.

What is Easter to me you ask? To me Easter is when we celebrate the rising of Christ from the grave, to remind us that not all is lost in this world of ours. Bringing us new hope and renewed faith in that which is not tangible but surrounds us all the same.

In a world that is in an economic down turn, where people are losing their jobs, their homes and often time their faith in what is good. Easter brings about a renewed sense of hope.

So as your eating your deviled eggs and gorging on that rack of lamb, take a look around you and remember to thank the good lord above for our friends, family and all that we have.

Have a very Happy Easter!

Kat and the Kids

Someone asked about why people should be civil to each other if there were no afterlife, and asked to keep it non-religious…so I had to figure out an answer…

Another Awesome Semi Rant by our own G

Senator Obama has consistently shown on the campaign trail that he wants to discuss the issues that we as voters are concerned about.

Amidst the constant barrage from Senator Obama’s opponent regarding his lack of experience, raising campaign funds, his plans for tax breaks and balancing the budget, he’s remained steadfast in his conviction that we as voters want to hear about the issues that are near and dear to our hearts and pocketbooks.

I find it comforting that the man, who in my opinion is the best candidate to fill the job, wants to tackle the issues that concern me. With unemployment up, banks failing, foreclosures, a volatile stock market and massive foreclosures, Senator Obama strives for change.

On his website you’ll see a quote where he states, “I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington…I’m asking you to believe in yours.” You’ll also find a link to his stance on the issues at hand; you’ll also find links to things such as “The Blueprint of Change”, the full Obama Tax Plan, and more. This is a very comprehensive website that gives a voter a good grasp of what Senator Obama speaking to not only in his bid for the highest office of the land but also his goals after he is elected.

Change is driven by those who make an effort to participate in the election process. Your vote is the jump off point and what both candidates are striving so hard to gain. It’s the reason we hear so many campaign speeches, see so many advertisements and have so much discussion regarding this year’s Presidential race.

So, I implore you to take the time, research both canidates and in the end the answer will be clear. Lets give change an opportunity to better our lives!

Vote for Senator Obama on Nov. 4^th

~Kat

Please join me in wishing my niece Meggie a very happy third birthday!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEGGIE!!!!

Love,

Auntie Kat

I’m not sure how many people outside of California have heard of Prop 8, which will ban the ability of same sex couples to marry.

According to Ballot Pedia.org the verbiage goes as such:

Proposition 8 is a proposed amendment to the California constitution which if passed into law would be known as the California Marriage Protection Act. This California ballot proposition will appear on the November 4, 2008 ballot along with eleven other statewide propositions. Proposition 8 is one of four ballot measures which propose to amend the California state constitution and appears on the ballot titled as Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry.

If it passes, it will add a new constitutional amendment to the California Constitution that will say “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California” and it will be known in law as the California Marriage Protection Act^[1]

The electoral contest over Prop. 8 has attracted passionate interest, attention and dollars from around the county. Through October 20, supporters of Prop. 8 had raised about $27 million ($21.3 from Californians), while its opponents had raised $24.3 million ($15.5 from Californians). In mid-October, there have been significantly more donors of $1,000 and above to the “No on 8″ side.^[2],^[3]

Checks in the $1 million range have been written to both campaigns from wealthy backers, and the campaigns also each have tens of thousands of small donors–62,000 donors for the “Yes on 8″ campaign and over 30,000 for the “No on 8″.^[4],^[5],^[6],^[7]

While I’m a single, heterosexual female, I fully believe who are we to put into law who can marry whom.

My feeling is this if two people love each other and wish to marry, fine by me. I think that if you love someone and they are of legal age; allow them to marry if that is their wish. Allow them the same rights that any heterosexual couples are allowed. Who are we to discriminate based upon people’s personal feelings of religion. This is no different than saying that if your Christian you should NOT marry someone who is a non believer. Take the following passages from the bible.

The Bible does not forbid interracial marriages. It does, however, forbid a Christian from marrying an unbeliever: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” (2 Cor. 6:14).
In Numbers 12:1-8 is an account of Moses marrying an Ethiopian woman. ^“And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman” (Num. 12:1).
Other Bible verses translate this as “Cush.” Cush is the ancient location of Ethiopia. Miriam and Aaron were upset with Moses because he married a Cushite woman. Cush has also been considered to be the northern part of Egypt. Either way, it is very possible that Cushite woman was of a different race.  God defended Moses for marrying this woman.  If race were an issue, this would have been a great place to set the matter straight.
Also, people of different races were not mentioned as being among those forbidden by God for Jews to marry, see Exodus 34:11. (As taken from the CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS & RESEARCH MINISTRY website)

So what makes these types of marriages, heterosexual people of different faiths, different, from those who would seek a same sex union? These kinds of marriages happen daily and yet we aren’t busy making laws against them. The bible clearly states that both are forbidden and yet we are accepting of mixed belief marriages, so before you go tossing your bible verses at why we should deny same sex marriages; remember there is an entire bible to read not just the one or two passages that make those who are against prop 8 feel justified in their beliefs. Let’s make sure that everyone is treated equally under the law.

If we are not going to allow people of the same sex to marry, then let’s not allow heterosexual couples who do not prove they are both Christian to marry?  Ridiculous you say so do I! Where does it end?

I for one am going to vote NO on this prop.

~Kat

I have to admit, I’ve become addicted to listening to CNN, Fox and various other stations as of late.

Being a registered American Independent, it has been interesting listening to the campaigns of both Barrack Obama and John McCain. I’ve listened to three debates, several campaign speeches by the two candidates, their running mates and people who are supporting their run for President.

I’ve sorted through a myriad of information being disseminated by both parties extolling the virtues of their candidate. I’ve heard about “Joe the plumber, Pat the Republican Teacher and several others who suddenly have become the best friend of one of our candidates.

But lets be honest here, what I would like to know is how will each candidate work for me, while he’s in the White House. How will he ensure that I continue to have a job, that the economy will not sink further, that health care will still be available and so on?

I get tired of the constant negative campaigning. I want to know who the best man is for the job not what the other guys ideas will do to the country while not sharing what your ideas will do for me as a citizen of this great nation. I want to tell both candidates; let your ideas get you into the White House not your ability to negatively campaign.

My vote will be going to the person, who i feel will best answer this question. “Who is the best man for the job?”  In reviewing all i know about both candidates, the man I vote for will be the one I feel best fills the requirements that I believe are required by anyone who is running for President.

I believe that Barrack Obama is the best person for the job. To date, he’s been the candidate who has been willing to discuss and focus on the issues at hand, his concern with the American and Global economy is evident in the way he approaches this campaign. He has the right attitude and while people might feel he’s inexperienced, I believe he will make sure he surrounds himself with advisors who do.

I had to chuckle today when I heard Governor Palin; she was giving a campaign speech in which she stated that if we elect Sen. Obama, the Democrats will have a Democratic President, Congress and Senate.  It seems the republicans have missed the boat, in the last 8 years of George W. Bush’s presidency; they had six of those years with a republican congress, so tell me why wasn’t this fixed at that point? I’m tired of hearing that it’s always the democrats’ fault we are in this situation. The system was broke, republicans had the chance to fix it and they elected not to until our economy tanked. So I say lets give the Democrats the same opportunity we afforded the Republicans for six years, I believe we’ll be pleasantly surprised.

So remember when you head to the polls, your vote does matter, be it your candidate wins or not. We are lucky to have the right and privilege of casting our vote for the person that we as a majority think should be in the White House, leading our great nation!

If you want to be heard, take the time on November 4^th to vote!

Best wishes to each of the candidates.

~Kat