For Thursday, June 9th, 2011

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

JUNE 9th, 2011

If you can't see the bright side of life, polish the dull side

It's THURSDAY!

This is...International Clothesline Week

International Clothesline Week was created to encourage people to hang their clothes to dry instead of using electricity or gas. There is nothing like the smell of freshness of clothes that have been line dried outdoors.

International Clothesline Week encourages the global public to hang clothes to dry instead of using their electric or gas dryer.

If you can, make it a lifetime practice. Like a new years resolution make it the beginning of a new healthy habit.

If you already do hang your clothes, commit to encouraging at least one other person, IN THE WORLD, to hang their clothes and commit to doing something else for the environment.

Happy Hanging!

Basic Clothesline Rules:

If you don't know what clotheslines are, better skip this part

You had to wash the clothes line before hanging any clothes - walk the entire lengths of each line with a damp cloth around the lines.

You had to hang the clothes in a certain order, and always hang whites with whites, and hang them first.

You never hung a shirt by the shoulders - always by the tail!. What would the neighbors think?

Wash day on a Monday! . .. . Never hang clothes on the weekend, or Sunday, for Heaven's sake!

Hang the sheets and towels on the outside lines so you could hide your unmentionables in the middle

It didn't matter if it was sub zero weather ... clothes would freeze-dry.

Always gather the clothes pins when taking down dry clothes! Pins left on the lines were tacky!

If you were efficient, you would line the clothes up so that each item did not need two clothes pins, but shared one of the clothes pins with the next washed item.

Clothes off of the line before dinner time, neatly folded in the clothes basket, and ready to be ironed.

IRONED? Well, that's a whole other subject!

A Clothesline Poem

A clothesline was a news forecast
To neighbors passing by,
There were no secrets you could keep
When clothes were hung to dry.

It also was a friendly link
For neighbors always knew
If company had stopped on by
To spend a night or two.

For then you'd see the fancy sheets
And towels upon the line;
You'd see the company table cloths
With intricate designs.

The line announced a baby's birth
From folks who lived inside -
As brand new infant clothes were hung,
So carefully with pride!

The ages of the children could
So readily be known
By watching how the sizes changed,
You'd know how much they'd grown!

It also told when illness struck,
As extra sheets were hung;
Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,
Haphazardly were strung.

It also said, Gone on vacation now
When lines hung limp and bare.
It told, We're back! when full lines sagged
With not an inch to spare!

New folks in town were scorned upon
If wash was dingy and gray,
As neighbors carefully raised their brows,
And looked the other way . . .

But clotheslines now are of the past,
For dryers make work much less.
Now what goes on inside a home
Is anybody's guess!

I really miss that way of life.
It was a friendly sign
When neighbors knew each other best
By what hung on the line.

NEW IN THE KITCHEN

National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day

Strawberries = sweet; rhubarb = tart. Together they're like nature's Sweet Tarts!This combination has made such an impact that June 9 has been designated National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day

To make this delicious pie you will need:

1 package double 9-inch pie crust
1 pint fresh strawberries, washed and stemmed
3 cups chopped fresh rhubarb
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch

Prepare pie crust according to recipe. Heat oven to 400 F. Place bottom crust in 9-inch pie pan.

In large bowl, combine all filling ingredients and mix lightly. Spoon into pie crust-lined pan and top with second crust. Fold edge of top crust under bottom crust and flute edge. Cut deep slits in several places on top.

Bake pie in preheated oven for 45-60 minutes or until golden brown. You may want to place pie on strip of foil for last 15 minutes to guard against spillover.

If desired, serve with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream and a large whole strawberry.

PRAYER FOR OUR TROOPS

Please pray for God's protection of

our troops and HIS wisdom for their

commanders.

Lord, hold our troops in

your loving hands.

Protect them as they protect us.

Bless them and their families for the

selfless acts they perform for us

in our time of need. I ask this in the

name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

AND bless our Police Officers, Firefighters

and Paramedics and EMT's

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

AROUND HOME

Clothesline wisdom: Want a kid to go to bed at night without complaint? Put sheets on the bed that have been on the clothesline all day.

I used to love my clothesline. I loved the peacefulness of those few minutes hanging out the laundry every day. The chance to soak up fresh air and the sun’s rays as I have the cool, clean touch and smell of just washed clothes in my hands. It was a precious little intermission of time to breathe in my day.

The smell of fresh laundry dried in the sun is something you can't put into worlds and no, you cannot find it in a bottle of fabric softener either. Summer is here. Not officially but certainly within our hearts. In my mind, that’s when we haul out the clothes pins and set our sheets a sail!

I find myself reminded that getting what I want isn’t always the best thing. Because sometimes it might mean I’m missing out on something better.

Simple pleasures for the simple mind...

COUNTING THE DAYS

It's the memories that make me want to see more clotheslines with laundry wiping in the breeze.

12 DAYS UNTIL SUMMER!

Keep looking ON THE BRIGHT SIDE of things.

A little smile, a word of cheer,
A bit of love from someone near…

Love,

ma