Book Club

I love to read so when I was invited to join a book club 10 years ago I was very excited.  For the last 10 years I have read some really good books that I probably would not have read if it wasn't on the book club reading list.  I read some challenging books that I had to treat like homework to finish reading. I read some books that were so interesting that I couldn't put them down and finished overnight. At the same time there were a few books that were painful to read, and some books that I really couldn't bring myself to finish (very, very few books). For the last 10 years I have read about 100 books with my book club friends.  I appreciate their suggestions on what to read;  it helps me to read a more wide range of books.

For the last 10 years as a book club we have had a movie night, played games, did cookie exchanges, visited the Ann Frank human rights memorial, had a white elephant gift exchange, and shared many sweet refreshments together. We talked about the books we read, how they applied to us.  We talked about what we learned from them and sometimes we disagreed and had some heated arguments (without bad feelings because we are cool like that).

I was thinking about our book club and I wonder if reading books and having a discussion is a secondary purpose of the book club. I noticed that there are a few clubs are out there for people to seek out and join.  There are quilting clubs, knitting clubs, and book clubs. And there are few of them that they don't necessarily call it a club, but they get together to run, hike, or do other activities and hobbies they pursue together.  I was a part of a play group for a while when I had little kids. Most people seek out others for friendship and a sense of belonging.  My husband said that we are adults so we don't just hang out like teenagers; we need a purpose or goal to get together.  It might be quilting, knitting, reading, or exercise,  and those things will be done when we get together, but he said we are getting together because women need other women and we get together for friendship and support as much as having a literary discussion. I pondered about what he said about the real reason for clubs. 

It is true that I consider my book club members my friends. We exchange recipes, we give and receive parenting tips, share news from old friends, and share garden vegetables.  We know each others children and grandchildren.  We know when someone is having a health problems.  We know what worries others have.  We don't know how many spoons others have in their drawers, but we have a pretty close relationship.  I know I can go to them with my troubles and I will be comforted.  I am truly grateful for the wonderful friends I have.

I am very excited about our new reading list for 2017. I look forward to getting together with my book club friends.

Happy reading everyone.      

Are you ready for Christmas?

It is the time of the year when you hear a lot of conversations starting with "Are you ready for Christmas?" Your family and friends ask you, cashiers at the stores ask you, and sometimes perfect strangers ask you with a smile. The first time a friend from church asked me this question I answered without hesitation, "Yes."  I was thinking, I got the Christmas tree up and decorated, and had a few gifts for our baby daughter under the tree.  What more is there to do?

I grew up in Korea and our family never celebrated Christmas. Christmas was a christian holiday and unless you belonged to some church it was just another day.  If you did belong to a church you would go to church on Christmas eve and exchange gifts with your friends, sing carols, and maybe play some games.  Since that is all I knew about Christmas having a Christmas tree with twinkling lights and gifts under the tree was more than sufficient to say, "Yes" to "are you ready for Christmas?"

But pretty soon I found out there is a lot more to do to be ready for Christmas.  First, a lady from our church showed up at our door step with a fruit basket.  Since we were young and poor I was really grateful for the gift and I found out that people do these kinds of things during the Christmas season.  Then I noticed that there were a lot of home baked goods exchanged between friends and neighbors. I think we eat more home made cookies, cakes, and sweet breads during December than any other month.  I mean, you can recycle some of them and no one will notice.  Well, if you want to do that, make sure you know which cookies came from which family so you don't accidentally re-gift their own. The family newsletters and Christmas cards from distant families and friends who never had contact with you throughout whole year start to show up in your mail box. Then there is endless gift buying and making; getting a perfect family picture; Christmas parties for work, family, and friends to attend.  The list goes on and on.  How can you possibly be ready for Christmas when the list of the things to do is about 10 pages long?  I learned really quick that when someone asks if I am ready for Christmas, the correct answer is always "No."

Over the years with our children we also participated in gift giving, cookie plate delivering, and caroling. The best part of Christmas is bringing families together.  That is why we look forward to Christmas every year.  Making sugar cookies together, movie nights with a fire going, hot chocolate after the caroling and reading the Christmas story together.  What is there to not love about Christmas.  So of course I am ready for Christmas.  Not because I have all the perfect gifts for everyone, or have the best looking sugar cookies to share. But because we can be together with our family.

Life: it is not a competition

Life can be like hikers ascending a steep and arduous trail. It is a natural and normal thing to occasionally pause on the path to catch our breath, to recalculate our bearings, and to reconsider our pace. Not everyone needs to pause on the path, but there is nothing wrong with doing so when your circumstances require( Elder M. Russell Ballard General conference Oct 2016).

My daughter shared this with me today.  She probably thought that I could relate to what he was talking about and she is right.  One of my favorite activities is hiking through the wilderness. Whenever I go I gain a deeper appreciation for God's creation and can't help but sing "How Great Thou Art".  Well, more like humming between breaths.  I always knew that I am not the most fit person and a somewhat slow hiker.  I didn't realize how slow I was until this summer when we went hiking with couple of friends. When Mike and I go hiking he always lets me go ahead of him so I can set a pace that is comfortable for me.  From the very beginning I could tell that they were much better and faster hikers than I am.  I was feeling pretty bad and somewhat embarrassed when they had to wait for me to catch up from time to time.

As long as I remember I always had low blood iron and shortness of breath.  I assumed that I had a mild case of asthma, but my doctor told me it is caused by not having  enough oxygen in my blood and because of that my heart has to work extra hard. So when I hike up steep mountains my heart works extra extra hard which makes me slow down and take a lot of breaks.  So, knowing this, I don't feel as bad about being a slower hiker.  I still get to the lake that we set out to go.  It might take me longer to get there, but at the end of the day I am there and that is what counts.  One benefit of being slow I get to enjoy more just because of so many breaks.

I was thinking about hiking in connection with life.  We all start out together, but soon some of us will choose to not continue, some of us will choose to take short cuts, some of us will enjoy the beauty of hiking, while some of us will complain about the weight of packs or the heat of the day.  While we are on this journey some of us will notice that others have better equipment, more fashionable clothes, or better things to eat. We will notice that others are faster than us, have more energy than us, or are more cheerful than us.

Did you ever compare your life with others? I did that many times and still do from time to time.  We live in a very competitive society and even when we try to not compare ourselves with others sometimes situations arise that make us compare and notice our shortcomings.
When my first born was about five months old someone said to me, "what? she is not crawling yet?  so and so is about the same age as your daughter and she is already crawling." Well, guess what she learned to crawl, walk, and run and turned out to be a just perfect child. It is okay to be a late bloomer.  Does it really matter how early you lean to crawl, speak, know your colors, finish college, or get married? I didn't start college until I was 36 years old.  I married a little later than others. The most important thing is to not give up while trying to reach our lake.  What our lake might be is different from person to person.

I appreciate Elder Ballard's words.  It is okay to slow down and take a break.  Just remember that as long as we are doing better than we have been and continue our journey to our lake everything will work out.

Side note:  I am taking a serious amount of iron by doctor's orders and I hope that will help me become a better hiker.           

       

Scarves for the women and children's shelter

One of the things that I love to do is knitting.  I am not really good at it, just at beginner level.  3 years ago I started collecting scarves for people in need.  The first year I, with help from my friends, donated 32 scarves to refugees.  Last year I donated 30 scarves to the women and children's shelter.  I hope to continue until I am physically unable to do it.  

I grew up poor I know what is like to have no socks or a coat to wear in cold weather.  My mother was supporting our family of 6 children on her own. My father had black lung disease from being a coal miner and was unable to work.  My mom made barely enough money to put food on the table.  Looking back, I am so grateful for all my blessings. I have more than enough socks to wear.  How can I not do a small part to help others in need knowing what it is like to not have anything.  

Because I have been given much, I too must give (LDS Hymn #219).  But I am not doing this alone.  I have friends who have helped me with this for the last three years.  They donate yarn and  share their time and skill to make these warm scarves with love.  I am very grateful to know such generous people.          

This is the yarn that was donated to me by my friend

I have 14 scarves here but I know more are coming

Because some of the yarn I have is not enough for a scarf I am also making some hats

Thoughts on journal writing

When we went to Sequim WA for our anniversary  we stayed at a really charming place called "The Loft".  They advertise the place as an "up scale romantic get away".  It was a great place and everything was perfect.  I loved the heated bathroom floor and it had an outdoor heater over the deck so you can stay outside and watch the stars at night without getting cold.  I think Mike's favorite was the hot tub.  It was nice to soak in after the long day hike at Olympic National Park

A view from the deck 

My favorite thing was actually a guest book.  I found it on the table and decide to see what other people said about the place.  Pretty soon I was totally sucked into the stories of people I had never met and never will.  A man wrote about his trip here to celebrate his 70th birthday.  A woman wrote about her trip with her boyfriend and before the end of their trip he proposed.  Another woman wrote that they were here for their mini honeymoon. A lot of people wrote about their adventures in the area.  It was like reading someone's journal. These people were from all over the country and all had a different story to tell.  I felt connected to these people because they shared their stories in the guest book.  I love reading stories from real people.  I love their struggles, happiness, and experiences.

I was never a good journal writer.  I tried to keep a journal few times in my life, but I never could keep at it.  I don't think I am a bad writer.  After all when I was in high school and even after that I wrote  love letters for my friends. (I don't remember if I charged them for it or not).  So why, when it comes to journal writing, I have nothing to write? I think it started when I was in elementary school.  During the summer break we were required to keep a journal as part of our homework.  I remember writing a months worth of journal in a few days before school started.  of course I didn't remember what I did all summer long so I ended up making up a whole bunch of things.  It wasn't fun and I associated writing a journal with homework and chores.

The biggest reason that I don't write is that I safeguard my thoughts and emotions.  Since that is what makes a journal interesting and I am not ready to share that with anyone who might read them, it makes it hard to write.  I mean I can write meaningless things like what we had for dinner, about the weather, and such things, but is that what I really need to leave behind?  

I need to look at journaling from a different angle. It doesn't have to start with "Dear diary" on the top of a note book page.  I just need to discover what kind of writing works for me.  Wish me a luck since I haven't found one yet.

Wait a minute... writing a blog is a form of journal right?

Living on $20 per week part II

I know it is about two weeks late but I thought I will report on the last two weeks of living with less.
The last week was especially hard.  We ran out of chocolate chips, butter, and we were getting very tired of eating out of our pantry. 

We all survived and here is how.

First, I took our change jar to the bank and got $29 which was a big help.

Second, our daughter took us out to dinner one night and it was so nice to eat out after a month of not going out.

Third, it is football season.  We get together to watch the game as an extended family and everyone brings something to share.  We took deviled eggs and home made pickles.  We get fresh eggs from our chickens and I made a whole bunch of pickles just a while ago.  It cost us nothing and we had chicken wings made by our sister-in-law (she makes the best chicken wings). 

Fourth, we had family Sunday dinner and again it was pot luck and we took a fruit salad made with things that we already had. 

This is one of the dishes I made.  It is pretty cheap and our family likes it.  It is a Korean dish call bibimpob.  The basic idea is that you have rice as your base and some sort of protein, vegetables of your choice, an egg, and hot pepper paste.  I usually use spinach or swiss chard as greens, but here I have kale instead because kale was cheaper.

A few interesting experiences I had.

First, at the beginning of the third week I went to the store to pick up something and I had two weeks allowance of $40 with me.  I thought I was being careful but when I got to the check out line it was more than $40 and I had to tell the cashier to put some items back.  For some reason I forgot to take my wallet with me.  If I had my wallet I would probably have pulled out my debit card and paid the whole bill to avoid the embarrassment.  I was very grateful that this was by choice not out of necessity.

Second, I have a weekly lunch date with my husband, and I like to make something that is more/different than a ham sandwich. I found out that I actually put more thought into our picnic lunch since take out wasn't an option.  I took juice or milk in a mason jar instead of buying a soda.  I had to get up early to make cookies and actually had to look up a recipe a few times.  Ranch potatoes and leftover chicken was really good.

Third, my perception of money has changed during the month.  I found myself counting pennies, comparing prices and trying to find cheaper substitutes.  I need to practice more frugal living everyday and I found out by living on $109 last month I can do this.

I spent the last of our money buying three doughnuts.  Sometimes you just need to have a doughnut. When I went to pay for them the cashier asked me if I wanted to donate $1 for the children's miracle network.  I told him I wished I could but I am counting my pennies.  He told me he feels my pain and he understands. Maybe he does understand me or any other people who had to count pennies.  But I am not sure if I do.

Our 25th Anniversary Trip to WA

We took a four day trip to Washington for our 25th anniversary.  Even though we do not have small children at home to look after, because of Mike's teaching schedule four days is all we can manage to get away.  

The weather was perfect and the drive was beautiful.  We visited the Bellevue botanical garden.  It is part of the city park system and was free to the public.  The garden was divided into different themes: rock garden, Japaneses garden, perennial garden, waterwise garden, just to name a few.  I loved the dahlia display.  My mother had dahlias in her flower bed when I was a little kid.  

We visited the Olympic game farm in Sequim.  It is 84 acres of drive through zoo where you can feed and have a very close look at these friendly animals. Mike had great fun feeding them and because I didn't want to risk my fingers getting licked by them I took the pictures.

This Yak was so eager to take the bread out of Mike's hand he practically slobbered all over the side of our car.

We had to guard our bread from this greedy llama.

There were a lot of peacocks and peahens with their babies at the farm.

This is a waving bear.  He waved at us as we drove next to him and at first I didn't realize what he was doing, but he was kind enough to wave two more times so there was no mistake what he was doing.  Only after the visit to the farm I found out he is quite famous.  you can find a video of him waving on YOUTUBE.

This elk was on guard duty.  He was waiting for us right by the gate.

The white deer at the bottom of this picture chased us while we were driving and as soon as he figured out that Mike was not handing out bread anymore he switched over to my side begging for bread.


We went to the Dungeness national wildlife refuge.  It was a short walk from the parking lot along a beautiful forest trail.  The spit itself is about 5 miles long and there is a light house at the end.  We didn't make it all the way to the light house because walking on the sand and pebbles was putting too much strain on my sore ankle. 

Someone had a fun making this.

There was driftwood of all sizes everywhere. 

The view of the spit from the top of the trail.


We loved Olympic National Park.  We decided that we have to come back and spend more time enjoying this beautiful park.  It has all the things that I love: the ocean, waterfalls, forests, hiking trails...

For this trip we hiked in the Hoh rain forest.  It was beautiful with maple trees changing colors mixed with evergreens, ferns and mosses on the ground. We hiked a couple of short trails.  The one thing I noticed was that there was no dry place to sit and eat our lunch.
  

This curtain of mosses was soft to touch.

Look at this cute mushroom! I would love to have some of these in my fairy garden.

I learned that this is called a nursery log.  You can see the seedlings growing on the log.

It was a such a great trip.  I love spending time with Mike. 

Living on $20 per week part I

We had a few big expenses this year.  
First of all our daughter was married in May. Even though it wasn't a big fancy wedding all of the costs still add up to a big sum of money. (a little confession: I never added it up). It was lovely and we are very happy for her.
Second, our other daughter, who studies music, needs to upgrade her instrument to a professional quality one. She worked over the summer, and with her scholarship money she has most of the money, but we still need to help her out with some.  Professional instruments are really expensive.
Third, our 25th anniversary is coming up in October and we are planning to take a little trip.

    
During the month of September I decided to live on $20.00 per week to save some money and use our food storage items.  I came up with a few rules and exceptions.

1. All the bills will be paid, of course.
2. Gas money for the cars is not included in the $20 budget. 
3. Medical expenses are also not included in the budget.
4. We can use all the spare change we find around the house and in the car.
5. If someone takes us out to dinner we will take it.

It has been two weeks since we started this crazy money diet, and I am happy to report that we are doing great.  I mean, I miss having chocolate here and there, and I really feel like it is time for me to get some new shoes, but we are not starving or on a ramen diet yet. 

What I noticed is that I need to plan out carefully and ahead of time. We have eaten pretty well so far.  Homemade pasta and shrimp with butternut squash sauce. Tacos with homemade tortillas. BBQ chicken, green beans and baked sweet potatoes. Chicken stir fry. Homemade macaroni and cheese. These are just a few of our meals.

Here are some things I noticed over the last two weeks.

1. We bake more - bread, cookies, and brownies.
2. Homemade always tastes better - pasta, tortillas, pickles...
3. Ice cream is definitely a need - we paid $6 for it, but sometimes you just got to have it.
4. Busy schedules can totally ruin your plan - last Saturday we had a church meeting, and right after the meeting we went to watch a football game and didn't have time to eat dinner.  We spent $10 on chocolate milk, doughnuts, yogurt and M&Ms.  Half of our weekly allowance in one night.
5. Some busy days you can still make it work - just a few days ago I had a church activity, Mike was teaching a class, and our daughter was at work.  We all got home about 9:30 and still managed to put dinner together. All of us worked together and it was a great time. 

The next two weeks are going to be harder. We might have to try out that ramen diet... I hope not.  We have chickens to give us fresh eggs daily, and have all our other basic needs other than the meat.  We might try a vegetarian diet for a while.  Beans and rice sounds good.

Side note: We ran out of olive oil, Mike misses his soda, and our daughter has to buy her own snacks.

Looking for Sockeye Salmon at Redfish Lake

This is Redfish lake in Idaho.  It got its name from the Sockeye salmon returning from the Pacific ocean to spawn and turn bright red afterwards.  There were so many of them that the lake would turn red.  What a sight that would have been.  I know that hasn't happened for a while because of the population decline of this amazing creature, but they are still returning to this lake and I wanted to witness this incredible event.  Can you imagine seeing these fishes jumping over waterfalls to get to their spawning ground?  I did my research and I had five different areas that I could possibly see them. 

little Redfish lake

The first place to check was where the Salmon River connects to Redfish creek.  Didn't see any of them there. The second place they suggested was Fishhook creek.  According to my reading this was an excellent spot and they suggested that I have my camera ready to capture them.  So there I was standing by the creek and waiting for them.  I waited and waited some more, but no fish were in sight. 

A creek by Redfish lake

Fishhook creek

Fishhook creek

We waited by the creek for a while then decided to hike up along the creek a little bit to see if we could find a better viewing area.  The weather was great and we saw some aspen trees turning colors.

Here is my husband who goes along with my crazy ideas.

We didn't see any fish, so instead of wandering around to other suggested areas we decided to check with the visitors center and ask them where all the Sockeye salmon are.  

A very friendly visitor center employee told us that basically there are no fish to see.  She said because they are an endangered species Fish and Game captures them when they reach Redfish creek.  Then they transfer the fish to a hatchery where they will spawn.  The fish hatchery people will look after them for about two years and when the fish are ready to travel to the ocean they will transfer them to Redfish creek and release them so they can come back to Redfish creek.

As you can see in the picture below only 427 of them returned to Redfish lake this year.  The article I based my hope of seeing these amazing creatures on was written in 2014 which was a really good year.   

       

The friendly visitors center employee told us that we can see some Kokanee salmon in the area.  They are like a cousin of the Sockeye salmon.  They are smaller in size and do not travel to the ocean.  The good place to see the Kokanee salmon was right behind the visitors center.  They are not bright red yet, but their color will change as it gets closer to spawning time.

The sockeye Salmon swim 900 miles to return to the lake.  I guess it is unpredictable how many sockeye salmon would return to the lake each year.  According to Idaho Fish and Game they had a great year in 2014, but in 2015 99% of them got killed in the Columbia River due to the high water temperatures. I hope one day I will be able to see these amazing creatures returning to the lake without human's assistance and make Redfish lake red again. 

  

(photo by JB Mellquist)