On Giving Thanks...

Just a short thought today, before going to devour the turkey -

This past October in General Conference, I couldn't help but notice how many times the scripture that states:

"And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments”

was mentioned. (9 different talks.) So, I'm thinking that was more than a gentle nudge that we are not doing this nearly enough.

I liked how Elder Bednar said that we should offer a prayer every so often, that is to give thanks only, not with any personal agenda, or to ask for any blessings, just thanks. period.

We have so much compared to other places in the world.
We really do need to appreciate it more.

Psalm 100:
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord,...Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing...Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good: his mercy is everlasting: and his truth endureth to all generations.

Just my 2 cents.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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Scary Story part 3

Despite popular demand, the saga continues...
(See parts 1 & 2 below)

Tina moaned and rubbed the back of her neck. She tried to push herself up to a sitting position, but her arm buckled beneath her from the pain.
She tried to get her bearings, - where was she?
She squinted, willing her eyes to adjust to the dark. Somewhere a light, - was it from a fire? flickered on earthen walls. Was she in a cave? How did she get here? She wished she could remember.

A shadow passed before the dancing light - something large and stooped over, that dragged one foot as it lumbered past.
A chill swept over her, and she felt the hair prickle up the back of her neck.
She felt woozy, and her eyes rolled back. She was out again.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Back at the cemetery, Mark, Charlene, and the rest of the friends, followed the trail of footprints on the dusty dirt road. Whatever was being dragged made the trail easier to follow. The trail led up to the back fence, where there was a break in the fence-line. From there, they struggled to see where it led through the fields of sage brush.

"Stop!" Derek told them - holding out his arm, as a mother bracing her children against a fall.
He knelt down, and retrieved a fragment of green yarn from an outcropping of brush.

"We're definitely on the right track - this is from the sweater Tina was wearing," he said, squinting off into the distance.

"You guys just had to pick the darkest night of the year to go joy riding, didn't you?" Cindy said, with a hint of accusation in her voice.

"Back off Cindy," chided Brent, "that's not going to get us anywhere - besides, we gave you all a choice in the matter, if you'll remember.
Now stop the blame game, and let's concentrate on what we're here for.
What's out there? Does anybody know what's up this way?
...Where could that..... - thing - be taking her?"

"This path leads up into the hills. There are some caves up in there." Mike answered.
"...I used to go up there with my uncle to pasture his sheep," he explained when they all turned to look at him.
Silence fell over the group. They looked in the direction of the hills, the hopelessness of the situation dawning on them.

Finally, Derek spoke - "Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?"
-Silence-.
"...There's no way we are going to be able to do this by ourselves. We're going to have to go back and get some help."

Gravely, they looked at each other - knowing that they would all soon be held accountable. And, at some point, Tina's family would have to be notified. None of them looked forward to that...
They turned, and headed back toward the car.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Silence reigned as they traveled the road back to town. Each member of the group avoiding eye contact with the others, as they struggled with their own emotions. Finally, as they pulled into town, Brent said, "So... where do you want to start?"

""Sherrif?" Mike said, looking for support. "Sherrif" they all agreed, nodding.
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Baking Tip

...Baking soda, and baking powder are not, I repeat not interchangeable.
That's all I'm sayin'...

Scary Story Chapter 2

Up in the night tonight - I just can't force myself to go to bed.
I realized after everyone turned in and left me alone, that I have that test at the hospital tomorrow, and I'm feeling a bit edgy about it, I guess.

I started this scary story just as a lark the other day, with no intentions of going any further, but my sister wants a second chapter - so, as per her request (and since I need something to do) - ta da!

Chapter 2

Brent, Charlene, and the rest of the group drove back to the cemetery, leaving a cloud of dust boiling up on the dirt road behind them.
Each member of the group scanned the scenery through the windows as best they could in the dim light, in case Tina had attempted to walk the long road back to town. They careened through the gate, and stopped near the spot where the car had been parked earlier.

In one swift movement, they all piled out of the car.

"Hold on, you guys - we need a plan so we don't all end up getting lost!" Mike chimed up, feeling guilty for his part in the calamity.
The group of friends circled around him.
"Let's team up in pairs, and spread out so we can cover more area," he added.

"I've got some flashlights in the trunk," Brent said, as he walked to the back of the car to retrieve them.

"What? You had flashlights all along, and yet you left us here in the dark? You really are a jerk Brent!" Cindy scolded.

Brent and his friends grew quiet, the seriousness of the situation taking all the humor out of them.

Mike passed out the flash lights, and started dividing them into groups...
"Oh, no you don't" - Charlene stopped him short, we will divide boy/girl, boy/girl - we're not giving you a chance to ditch us again!"

"Aw, come on, you guys," Derek complained, "give us some credit - we're not stupid enough to do that again. This is not a game anymore."

"OK, well, just the same..." Charlene added, a little less abruptly.

Armed with flashlights, and buddies chosen, they fanned out to search the cemetery.
They covered the small area in a short time, and bewildered, gathered back at the car to decide what to do next.

"Maybe she walked out through those fields out of sight of our lights," Brent offered, "Let's make some noise - maybe we'd have a better chance of her hearing us."

He leaned inside the car door, and honked the horn repeatedly. The rest of the group yelled and called out to her as they took a second sweep of the area.

"What's that?" Mike asked, shining his light on the ground just off the path.

"It looks like footprints - maybe some kind of ...dog?" Cindy observed.

"If that's a dog, I'm a munchkin!" Mike gulped.

"Look, there are more prints over here," he said, following the trail of prints.
He swallowed hard as the footprints merged with a set of small human prints. It looks like there might have been a scuffle here," he noticed, seeing that the tracks became numerous and smudged as they led past the edge of an open grave.

As he shone his light around, something inside the grave caught his eye. He stooped, and looked more carefully.
Both he and Cindy gasped - "It's Tina's shoe!"
They called out to the others in the group. "You guys, come over here - we found something!"

As the rest of the group trickled over, Mike gingerly jumped down into the hole and retrieved the shoe.

"Yup, that's hers alright - I went with her to buy these just the other day," Cindy said, looking gravely at Mike, she added - "This can't be good, can it?"
Mike turned away quickly to hide the sense of dread that was building inside, fearing that Cindy had hit the nail on the head.

As the others joined them, they showed them what they had found.
"Shine your lights all around here, you guys - let's see if we can find which direction she went." They walked slowly and deliberately, so as not to disturb any existing footprints, and combined the beams from their flashlights to make the light more intense.
They walked down the path a bit, when Derek pointed - "Look, it looks like something is being dragged here." They all looked at the spot Derek had directed them to, the blood draining from each face.

Just Playin' Around....(Scary Story part 1)

I was blog-hopping tonight, and I ran across an old contest on a publisher's blog from last Halloween. It was called the "Scare your pants off" contest. I read all the entries, and apparently, it was supposed to be just a couple of paragraphs that were the 'teaser' to a scary story.
I thought it sounded like fun, and even though I'm a year too late (typical me) I wanted to play anyway.
I broke all the rules, I'm sure, and it's way way too long, but the contest is over sweetie, so get over it! Hee hee....

Anyway, without further ado, here's my non-entry:

The moonless late October night was too delicious for Charlene and her friends to let pass unexploited. Fall semester had been stressful and difficult, and they needed to break out and let loose some frustration.
They exited the library, and loaded into Brent's car.

"Where to guys?" Brent asked, glancing in the rear-view mirror.

"Do you want to check out that Spook Alley that just opened up the street?" Derek offered.

"Naw - that's lame," Cindy complained, "let's go ride out to the old Wheeler place, or somewhere really creepy like that!"

"Are you sure you want to do that girls?" Mike teased, the wheels turning in his head. He sensed an opportunity for some real mileage here - scare the girls half to death, and they could get real clingy...

"I know just the place." He elbowed Derek with a wink when the girls all approved.

They drove down a long country road, giggling and trying to out-do each other by recounting frightening urban legends.

Tina sat quietly, pressed next to the back passenger door. She hated it when they got this way. Being scared was not her idea of fun.
She wished she had opted to stay at the library and just walk back to the dorm, but the truth was, she was afraid to cross campus by herself on a night as dark as this...

They drove through the old rusty gate which hung precariously by one hinge.

"Last chance to change your mind girls," Mike tortured, with an evil grin.

"You have got to be kidding!" Charlene protested when she realized where he had taken them. "Not this old deserted cemetery!"
The girls grew quiet, having second thoughts after all.

There were no street lights in this out-of-the-way relic of a small town's past.
Many of the neglected old graves were just mounds of earth, and some were so ancient that they had since sunken into deep eerie depressions. Most of the headstones no longer stood as straight monuments, but tilted, cracked, or toppled over all together.

Tingling with nervous tension, they all climbed out of the car.
"Leave the lights on Brent, it's too dark to see where we're walking," Cindy requested, a shudder passing through her.

"Okay," Brent acquiesced, nudging Mike and Derek.
He held his fingers to his lips in a shushing gesture.
He motioned for the other guys to follow him, and they quietly crept back into the car. Brent turned on the lights - and then started the engine.

He drove past the girls, his window rolled down - all of them guffawing and waving at the girls as they drove around the trail and back out through the gate.

Tina froze, as the other girls screamed and ran after the car, engulfed in the cloud of dust that trailed behind it. Out of breath, they huddled together, cursing themselves for letting themselves get into this situation to begin with.

Without the aid of the headlights, they stood, frozen.
They were afraid to move in any direction, not knowing where the graves were located, and terrified of tripping over, or worse - falling into one of them.
Several terror stricken minutes passed, when finally they saw two specks of light which were Brent's headlights returning to the scene of the crime.

Filled with relief, but at the same time frothing with righteous indignation, the girls plotted their revenge.
They practically fell over each other clambering back into the car, and ordered Brent to "get them out of there - NOW!"

Brent peeled out, throwing gravel as the wheels spun through the gate. All of the boys had a second laugh at the girls' expense.
The mood was ugly on the return trip, as the girls minced no words letting the boys know just how funny their little "joke" had not been.

They arrived at the dorms, and unloaded, deciding what - if anything, to do next. They were at a stalemate as to whether to go get ice cream, or just call it a night.
Cindy turned to make sure everyone had given their input. She looked panicked, searched left and right, then said, "Uh, guys - where's Tina?"

Everyone stopped talking, stunned.

"Cindy, do you remember seeing her get back into the car?"

Cindy, suddenly very pale, croaked, "...No, I don't remember seeing her at all since we first got out of the car!"

Now, all of them feeling panicked, ran to Brent's car and urgently climbed back in...
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

...Tina groaned, and pushed herself up from the ground where she had landed after everything had gone black.
She brushed off the gravel that clung to her cheek.
She looked around disoriented. Where was she? It was too dark for her to get her bearings. She turned, looking up into the star sprinkled sky.

She took a step, and dropped. She found herself waist deep in - what, a ditch? Just then, horror gripped her as she realized where she was. She had fallen into an ancient grave!
She scrambled desperately to get out, losing a shoe in the process. She shuddered as she stood, planning to just leave it there, but the realization hit her that she was also all alone, and that she was going to have no choice but to walk home.

She knelt and with a trembling hand, reached into the hole to try and retrieve it.
She heard the crunch of gravel behind her, and felt a whiff of warm breath cross her neck. Relieved, she turned and grouched; "It's about time - where have you... wha?...

Aaauuuuugggghhhhh!!!!!

...To be continued - or not...

Weekend Festivities

Well, Halloween is over, and we did party it up a bit.
I did a Halloween dinner that was lots of fun. (This is not a regular thing - I've always wanted to do it, but this year is the first time ever that I've actually had the time.)
Here's our Tricked out Halloween treats:
Horrid Hors D'euvres

Chili with Bat cheese

Mummy Dogs


Not all of my family dressed up, but here are those who did:
My oldest daughter was a belly dancer, and yes, she does dance too. (she made her costume herself)


My youngest daughter (in the red) & friend - they write and illustrate their own Manga-type stories, and were dressed as characters from them.

My grand daughters:


My son and his wife were James Bond and his Bond girl - awesome costumes, but I'm afraid my photo of them wasn't great.
That's our celebration in a nutshell.

In Closing...
...Can I just say that I am a fan of Christmas music, I really am - but hearing it played on the radio the day after Halloween is something I'm never going to get used to! I know the retailers are frantic to make a profit this season, but geeze! It still grates on the nerves a bit...
...Just one person's opinion.
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