Karen "Technology is My Friend" Sweet

Karen and Terri in Mexico - drinking with two perfect strangers - but what the heck. This is an old picture. That is all I can tell you as I am sworn to secrecy - but - truth is stranger than fiction!!!!

We are so techno!

Hey, Laura! Thanks for setting up this blog. What a faboo, au courant, tres moderne and savoire faire way to stay in touch.

Coming off a Thanksgiving weekend in which I attended three-count-'em-three feasts and never had to make anything more complicated than bread, I can say say I am deeply thankful for having so many friends who are great cooks. Among them, Mr. Jeff Randell, husband of Charter Cool Chick Terri Hovey-Randell. A word to the wise; if you get invited to dinner at Terri and Jeff's, say yes!

Looking forward to updates from all the CCs. Meanwhile, be well, laugh now, worry later.

What have we got to be thankful for

For a lot of us, 2007 has not been a great year.

Marilyn faced the fight of her life and came out on top!, Steve battled cancer, Carol Hahn's mother died, Terri's had a raft of family issues to overcome, Karen's husband is dealing with illness, and that's just what i can think of off the top of my head. And, of course, all of us have had a challenge at work! l I am sure there is more.

But along with that, there seems to be a lot to be thankful for nonetheless. Maybe a greater appreciation of what's really important.

Here's my list; add yours!

-- For every day Steve and I have together.
-- For caring and skilled surgeons, oncologists and nurses who have combined their skills to save his life.
-- For Blue Cross Blue Shield.
-- For close friends and family who have been there for support, chicken soup, lawn mowing and hand holding.
-- That Marilyn is home and working hard to be able to walk on the beach again.
-- That my mother is out of the hospital, home again and going strong at 79!
-- For a comfortable home surrounding us with memories of good times and good friends.
-- For the warmth of being sandwiched between two big dogs curled up around me in the morning.
-- That we have the means to pay for emergency surgery for a dog who eats rocks and orthopedic surgery for dog whose love of the game of b-a-l-l has resulted in a second major injury.
-- That I know Steve and I never walk alone through the tough times and have a chorus of friends who sing and dance in the kitchen with us.

-- Laura

White Sangria

I remember this fondly... especially watching Carol avidly dumping bottles of wine into it! Here's the recipe:

2 (750 ml) bottles inexpensive white wine (nothing too sweet)
2 bananas, peeled, sliced in 2-inch slices
1 orange, rind reserved, cut in segments
6 peaches, peeled, sliced in 6 wedges each
1 red apple, center removed, chopped medium dice
6 plums, sliced in 6 wedges each
2 lemons, reserve rind, juiced1 cup red grapes
2 cups ice Sugar
8 ounces seltzer or lemon-lime soda, optional

Place all fruit in a glass pitcher. Add 2 cups ice, lemon juice, orange and lemon rind, all the white wine and allow to sit in the refrigerator until just before serving. At the last minute, add sugar, to taste and soda, if desired.

Simply Recipes: Gazpacho: "Gazpacho was invented for the summer. Refreshingly cold on hot summer days, this adaptation of the classic Spanish soup deliciously combines the best of summer vegetables. Make sure you only use the freshest, highest quality ingredients for this soup.
6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 purple onion, finely chopped
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped
1 sweet red bell pepper (or green) seeded and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons sugar
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
6 or more drops of Tabasco sauce to taste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (omit for vegetarian option)
4 cups tomato juice

Combine all ingredients. Blend slightly, to desired consistency. Place in non-metal, non-reactive storage container, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, allowing flavors to blend. Serves 8.

I found this recipe online. It was awfully simple and really good. I made it in the food processor and chilled it overnight, I left out the sugar, and the tobasco (because steve was bothered by hot or spicy food).

Girlfriends

Girlfriends
Author unknown

Young and newly married, I relaxed under a pecan tree on a hot Texas summer day, drinking iced tea and getting to know my new sister-in-law, Estelle. Not much older than I, but already the mother of three, Estelle seemed to me experienced and wise.

“Get yourself some girlfriends,” she advised, clinking the ice cubes in her glass. “You are going to need girlfriends. Go places with them; do things with them.”

What a funny piece of advice, I thought. Hadn’t I just gotten married? Hadn’t I just joined the couple-world? I was a married woman, for goodness sake, not a young girl who needed girlfriends. But I listened to this new sister-in-law. I got myself some girlfriends.

As the years tumbled by, one after another, gradually I came to understand that Estelle knew what she was talking about. I remembered that she had said the word “girlfriends” with emphasis.

As I went along, I discovered the subtle difference between friends and girlfriends. You go to work with friends, go to dinner with friends, go to church with friends, belong to clubs with friends. You send friends greeting cards. You need friends in your life; all girlfriends were once only friends. But a girlfriend is different; I offer this praise of girlfriends.

Here is what I know about girlfriends:

• Girlfriends don’t complete.


• Girlfriends bring casseroles and scrub your bathroom when you are sick.


• Girlfriends keep your children, and keep your secrets.


• Girlfriends give advice when you ask for it. Sometimes you take it, sometimes you don’t.


• Girlfriends don’t always tell you that you’re right, but they’re always honest.


• Girlfriends still love you, even when they don’t agree with your choices.


• Girlfriends might send you a birthday card, but they might not. It does not matter in the least.


• Girlfriends laugh with you, and you don’t need canned jokes to start the laughter.


• Girlfriends pull you out of jams.


• Girlfriends don’t keep a calendar that lets them know who hosted the other last.


• Girlfriends will give a party for your son or daughter when they get married or have a baby in whichever order that comes!


• Girlfriends are there for you, in an instant and truly, when the hard times come.


• Girlfriends listen when you lose a job or a husband.


• Girlfriends listen when your children break your heart.


• Girlfriends listen when your parents’ minds and bodies fail.

My girlfriends bless my life. Once we were young, with no idea of the incredible joys or the incredible sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other. I want to tell younger women to take my sister-in-law’s advice. Get yourself some girlfriends. You are going to need them.