DSP Scrap Busting and other Adventures

 I am on a mission to complete two different aspects of downsizing. The first is to clear some books off our shelves. The second is to clean out some of my stamping stuff. 

To accomplish the first item, my job has been to read, read and read. After The King's Thane I picked up The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone (James Cross Giblin, Harper Trophy, 1990), a book I had purchased for homeschooling. That was a quick little read over a few nights when I could not sleep. I will pass it on to the girls. It gave me some background on ancient Egypt and on Napoleon, both subjects I knew little about. The Rosetta stone is an arifact which Napoleon's army discovered in 1799 when tearing down an old fort. The stone contained a decree writtin in three languages, Greek, Egyptian and Demotic. Over the next 40 years it took several scholars to unlock the "riddle" of how to read the Egyptian and Demotic writing. The rest, as they say, is history. Opening the door to history, that is.

My next foray into the bookshelf was a book I am only half way through, The Evolution Hoax Exposed (A.N. Field, Tan, 1971, reprint of  Why Colleges Breed Communists, Christian Book Club of America, 1941). I chose this book because I had done an independent study of  Evolution in college, but I had not put much effort into the class. I had purchased this book many years ago to fill in some details that I had not studied. When I first started reading the book my impression was that the author's belittling comments on college and university students would not win anyone over to his side. As I pursue reading, however, I find the book very enlightening. Evolution in some form or another is taken for granted these days. I hear both  Fr. Richard Simon and Patrick Madrid speak of it on Relevant Radio. But Mr. Field digs into the scientific and news communities at the time of Darwin's publication of The Origin of a Species, and demonstrates that right from the beginning there were those who did not believe Darwin credible. Two big hurdle were the absence of fossils and the inability of species to breed and produce fertile offspring. Those hurdles still exist. Darwin's claims were mostly assertions, not verifiable facts. But the most important part for me has been reading about the silencing and censorship of those who did not accept Darwin. What happened from 1859 to 1941 when this book was written seems exactly like today, when people are being censored for disagreeing with climate change, COVID, and transgenderism. Scientific facts are being replaced with name calling. Those who disagree with the politically correct position (The book deals with the influcence of the theory of evolution on politics, sociology and philosophy in the section I have not yet read.) are denied grants and advancement opportunities in their fields of study. Deja vu. 

As for stamping, I have made a concerted effort to depleat my scrap box. The picture shows more than 30 of the card bases which I have put together so far. I am enjoying some of the mixtures of old and new designer series papers that I was able to combine. When my box is cleaned out I will go back to stamping for the tops. Most of the completed cards will go to Sleepy Eye for the Schoenstatt gift shop, and to our St. Marcellus Mission Group Craft Sale in November. I have dug deeply into my stamps as well, and have used some of the previously unused stamps that I had purchased from JLN Connections in Wisconsin. Good to make use of all of the supplies I have spent money on over the years. But using up the scraps has not come without a price. I have gone through several rolls of adhesive tape. I am out of Old Olive paper, one of my favorites. And I had to purchase another packet  each of Whisper White and Very Vanilla paper. But it is exciting to get things done. Wahoo!

The top two are some of my favorites.

Last, I tried a recipe for Ezekiel bread which I had clipped from Tast of Home several years ago. I looked up the quote from Ezekiel which inspired the bread makers. I have to say that I felt like the bakers used the Bible. The only ingredient they used which was mentioned in Ezediel was wheat. Further searches of recipes on the internet showed me numerous others who actually used lentils, barley and the other ingredients in scripture for a true Ezekiel bread. But sprouted grains sound like lots of work, so I  think I will just look for a loaf in the store if I ever want to try it.   

Shaklee Sales

It has been five years since I last sat at a booth to sell Shaklee. I had a table at the St. Augusta Legion Craft and Vendor Sale this past Saturday. I have to say that I feel enriched by the experience. The show was very small, with only about fourteen vendors. It was on MEA week-end, and the weather was "October's bright blue". The crowds were people dropping by in groups of threes and fours. I knew it would be a good size for me, not too intimidating, and people I might possibly know. It was great to hear those who were familiar with Shaklee tell about their favorite products. It was also interesting to compare myself with other vendors who were there. I realized that not everyone was there because they loved the products that they were selling. One complained about all of the merchandise she gets stuck with because her company updates so frequently, and she has to stay on top of the new items. Another talked about how her company was making so much money off of someone's grandma's simple recipe, because people do not know how to cook or bake. Some of the products were clearly luxury items that had no appeal to me; jewelry which I didn't need, and food mixes for fattening dips which I would do better without. I had one customer remark to me that a company she had previously done business with required her to purchase $80 in products each month, whether she needed them or not. Shaklee is so wonderful because I can get my distributor benefits off of my own purchases, and there is no pressure to sell if I do not want to. All of that for my lifetime distributor membership of $40 with a free product thrown into the mix. I overheard another vendor talking about her low start-up cost, and I thought, I did not have to purchase anything except for brochures and some catalogs. I just pulled products off of my own shelves for the show, and pulled out my collection of empty bottles which I had saved from the last show. I really use what I sell. My up-line thought it funny when I told her how many samples of the Joint and Muscle Pain Cream I gave out, and that as people took samples, I was able to tell them I had it on my neck at that very moment. The thought that really stuck with me from the sale was how important it is to take care of customers, and to keep in touch.

I felt grateful for a couple of things besides the show last week. One was for the time I was able to spend in front of Planned Parenthood with 40 Days for Life. I find it much easier to say my rosary and chaplet when walking the sidewalk than at any other time. I also find that my walking speed has rapidly increased over the past month since the vigil started. I am also grateful for the things which Ari is learning at school, the rosary, the story about Maximillian Kolbe, and her having a sixth grade painting buddy. I also had the experience of going to confession after waiting in line for three other very long confessions, and I am able to ponder the workings of God's grace which brought the others there before me, and the consoling words the priest gave to me. I am grateful for our two little granddaughters and how they laugh and play together.

Another accomplishment of the week was that I finished 18 cards of one design suited for serious illness. I was able to use up all that was left of one of my colors. I had to color the stamps with a marker for almost every impression, but I did it, and so saved some waste. I also used up some of my chalk pastels. My Stampin' Up supplies were expensive, and it is good to be able to say that I used the investment. Here is my design. Oh. I have to say that the stamp sets used on the card are actually both garage sale purchases, though they are Stampin' Up.

             

Another Book Under My Belt

I have had a copy of The Spanish Match (Brennan Pursell, Sophia Institute Press, Manchester, NH, 2011) on my shelf since it came out five years ago. I jumped at the title since I had been reading other books of that same time period. I knew that Charles I of England had been dethroned and executed by the Puritans. One of my knitting books has a picture of the tunic he wore on the day of his execution. I also knew that St. Claude de la Colombiere fit in there somewhere with one of the monarch's, whose wife was Catholic. I had heard that James I was homosexual, and yet I also knew he had children. I also knew some of the Spanish royalty through my reading on Isabelle and Ferdinand, Catherine of Aragon and Philip II. At any rate, you get the idea of what made me snatch up the book when it was published.

I give The Spanish Match a low rating for two reasons. First, if a person is familiar with history, he already knows how the book ends, so there is no real suspense to the story. Second, unless a person is very well versed in the controversies surrounding this royal courtship, it is too difficult to determine what in the book is real, and what is an entire work of fiction, in spite of the author's disclaimer at the end of the book.. I had to go back to my reference book on the kings and queens of England to get a grip on the time period and the personalities, and to be able to distinguish at least in small part between truth and fiction. The up side of the book might be that he does not sugar coat the self serving behavior of the royals or the courtiers. Philip IV's French queen is portrayed as a cold, selfish wife, and the Duke of Buckingham as the lecher he apparently really was (I do not think he was bisexual in the sense of having a real attraction for men, but rather that he acted out of political expediency).  Philip is portrayed as having affection and consideration of the Infanta, his sister Maria. The one thing in the book which made me pause was the picture of Catholic Spain at a time when meat was not allowed during the entire season of lent. Talk about penance! For the peasantry who probably did not have much variety in food to begin with, this would have limited choices even further. For those who were better off who were accustomed to meat, this would have been a great sacrifice. Just another example of how weak we are today in comparison to our forefathers.

If this book had been better I would pass it along to one friend or another. As it is, I will either donate it to the Treasure Chest, or leave it at Catholic Charities for someone to pick up for free.

On another note, I purchased the new, numbers stamps and framelits from Stampin' Up. I have to make an anniversary card for a friend, so I will get to use that set this week. I am not sure why it took Stampin' Up so long to come out with a set like that. I am guessing that it will be a big seller. It will work for graduations, anniversaries, and birthdays. Adding numbers is a great way to personalize a card.

I got my three shelves put up in the basement for my stamping supplies. I can't say that it makes it much easier to get at my stuff than the old system of plastic bins and baskets which I had upstairs, I still have to open almost every bin whenever I go to make a card, and then I have to haul everything upstairs. At least it is not as difficult to dig through my stamp sets. I can get to my punches a little bit easier, too.

Got my three thrift store skirts altered and mended. I am looking forward to wearing the wool wrap, although it would be more exciting if it were -40 as it was in Minnesota winters gone by. It has to get ironed first, however. No telling how long that will take!

My wardrobe is almost exclusively in my autumn palette now. I discovered that I prefer the darker oranges, rusts and terra cottas to the lighter pumpkin color. I was thrilled to find an orange dress blouse at Saver's, but after spending all kinds of time altering it, the color  is not as rich as I first thought. Oh! Well!