While I don't celebrate Samhain, I do have several friends that do so to them, and all others who celebrate the day, I wish you a

Blessed Samhain

May Dis & Proserpina give you the sweetest of pomegranates. I hope that Ceres blesses you with the most beautiful of her gifts, all in her favorite colors. May you have a wonderful holiday.

One of my most favorite quotes, and the way I try to live my life ...

I'd rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I'm not.

What are some of your favorite quotes?

Just a great George song, fits my mood at the moment. Listened to it on Y100, Y100, Y100 - "The MOST Country with the Fewest Commercials, Guaranteed!". Yes, I do listen to KCYY, or KBOP, or any number of other TEXAS radio stations (Austin, Amarillo, San Antonio, Corpus, etc.). I spell country "COUNTRY100".

Oh, and what the hell is with this "doggie camp" crap? WTF dog needs a cabin with a fireplace to stay at when you go on vacation? With webcams to check up on poochie? Not like some folks have too much $$ and not enough brains!

Anyhoo, have lumpia to ready as we've got a meeting with pot-luck dinner up at the little one's class. I did manage to finish almost 4 dz. mini-cupcakes to take as well. Well, that and the oldest is 'sick' so she didn't go to school today.

It's a site I was e-mailed, and invited, to some time ago. I visit it pretty regularly (heck, I even bookmarked it), and I noticed there is a "Spread the Word" area. So, I'm spreading the word ...





You can ALWAYS find it under my "Our Military" heading because it's OUR military too. If you ever want to know what we think, what we fear, what we need, want or pray for just click over. I've "confessed" to a couple of things, not nearly as funny or poignant as many of them but important none the less.

Well here is our little set-up for Trunk or Treat on Saturday evening (and afternoon...) I had to abandon the marbling as I suck BDD at the task, thus I cheated and made it look like black stone (or tried to anyway).



Again this year we were the only ones handing out toys. One of the other trunks (not sure which, I manned ours and didn't get a good look at the others) was giving a choice of raisins or color books though. I had many parents compliment the fact they were in goody bags, many asked how long it took (about a month an a half, off and on) to do it and then they were astonished I took the time. Several younger kids' parents said thanks for us having glow sticks for the little, little ones. I have 3 of my own, I know that sometimes those 'toys' aren't the best idea but the glow-stick looks cool, and can be safely 'chewed' by little teeth without a real risk of breaking.


I think for only 3 days of creating I made a passable Caupona. Not the greatest ever of course, but doable. I had ONE, yes only 1, group know what it was (before reading the sign). They even pinpointed having seen surviving ones in Pompeii and Herculaneum. They earned major "Rhi-rhi" points for that.

I managed to paint the Lararium. Yes, it is a real one, not a fake or hoaky one. Hubby asked why I went to the trouble, and I told him my Lares might be offended if I did a cut-rate, easy-peasy fake one. Then he asked if the Lares have moved into the truck as they had a shrine there now and I told him I had no idea. I do know they send a "scouting" party on trips to make sure we don't move without them, but I don't know if that includes trips to the BX/Commissary/Mail/Base or just longer trips like vacations to Naples.

I did want to slap a couple of American kids. They 1 butchered the sign in terrible Latin, and then said they couldn't read it because it was in Italian. Um, close but no cigar there kiddo - Latin is the mama, Italian is the bastard child. However, I did get several older Italian kids that knew it was Latin, and at least 3 of them that could read it, properly, in Latin with the right accents. I'm actually impressed with that.

I do think I might have mis-written the verb form though. I used the masculine plural for Own = Dominerus (remember, classical Latin had no U). I thought it safer than using the feminine plural, or trying to do the feminine and masculine singulars. Oh well, no Romans rose from the grave to argue with me so ...

I did have a passing idea of listing the family name as a Gens. but hubby didn't get it, and didn't like it when I explained it so that was a no go. For an idea, you take the root of your last name, then drop the ending and add II (IE the Claudius family becomes the Claudii Gens.) So, we stuck with the Latin Familia, got the point across and without much confusion so it's all good.


I also had 1, Only ONE, lady identify who the middle pumpkin is. It is indeed the Green Man - or, well, my attempt at drawing one and then having hubby carve it. If it looks bad, blame me as the artist as he only cut the lines I drew.

We got several compliments on the pumpkins, though we bought the Simpsons pre-carved. I also got several compliments on my little Pizza slice. She was apparently the only pizza, and many parents were taken with her and told the hubby so. A few of the people I know on-base happened to tell me the same when they came by with their little kiddos. I guess I didn't do too shabby for no pattern, and the first time I've ever made a pattern. Mind, the shape was simple so that is probably the major reason I succeeded.


I had quite a few folks ask if we were re-enacters or SCA members. Um, no, hubby would kill me before he'd let me do it. Besides, as cool as his armour is, and the fact I sewed my own costume, neither of them are up to the 'standards' set by re-enactment groups so ... Bwwwwhhhhtttt!


I'm mulling a few ideas for next year's Trunk or Treat. It will be our last (at Aviano at least) so I want it to be a good one. Hubby has said he wants to be Death next year, not a Roman soldier. I'm trying to take that idea into account as to what to decorate with/as.

Okay, funny question ... Can any of my readers identify this plant?



It grows outside the Suburban Baths in Pompeii and hubby really liked the way it looks. It felt very much like a succulent, but without the hairs. It seems to like full sun, but with a soil that's rich but well drained.

Anyone have any ideas as to what it is? Common or scientific names are welcome.

With non-stop Rhianna and her Roman thing ...




He's probably not going to be too happy if he realized I posted that, so get a good gander at his zombish look before I take it down.


Oh, and on the subject of hubby, Rhianna and Roman ... It seems that he believes I could be a better tour guide than most of them at Pompeii and Herculaneum. It was bad enought that we were looking at the House of Menander (photos to come) and the 'guide' (I use that term oh so loosely) told someone that they had walked into the Atrium. Um, no, try again. My husband went so far as to ask me if that's what it was, and wasn't THIS (the internal garden/open space) the REAL Atrium? (Yes, he was correct, the Atrium is the interior garden/open space, not the impluvium pool in the entrance - see, hang around me long enough and you're bound to pick up SOME Roman history try as you might not to. While the Atrium Tuscanium is a sub type of Atrium, it is not, nor has it ever been the Impluvium pool. The guide also should have seperated the types of Atrium as the House of Menander has more than one type. However, if you're dumb enough to pay for the 'right' to be lied to, don't think I'll stop you being lied to.)


Now, I have a faux-marble counter to make to go with the rest of my little Caupona/Taberna for Trunk or Treat. Paint, a feather and hopefully the rain abates tomorrow ...

Number 10
Life is sexually transmitted.

Number 9
Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

Number 8
Men have two emotions: Hungry and Horny. If you see him without an erection, make him a sandwich.

Number 7
Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.

Number 6
Some people are like a Slinky ... not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs.

Number 5
Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

Number 4
All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

Number 3
Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200.00 and a substantial tax cut saves you $0.30?

Number 2
In the '60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

AND THE NUMBER 1 THOUGHT FOR 2007:
We know exactly where one cow with Mad-cow-disease is located among the millions and millions of cows in America, but we haven't got a clue as to where thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are located. Maybe we should put the Department of Agriculture in charge of immigration.



And the BONUS thought for today

"Life is like a jar of jalapeños. What you do today, might burn your ass tomorrow".

I started a Flickr account. You can access it here. Now, be forwarned, there will be NO complaints about subject matter or the fact it is mainly roman, Roman, ROMAN!!! :)

And don't forget your apron! This week's Carnival of the Recipes is It's a Small World. It celebrates all things kiddish and holiday. Get out the little mitts and let the kiddos help out around the kitchen this week!

Yeah, I got lots of 'em. I'm thinking of starting a photo blog to clear up some of the picture posts and save some space. Any one have any suggestions on places to host them (Flikr seems popular among others).

We're back from NAPOLI!! Or, more to Rhianna's taste - Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis and Boscoreale (couldn't find Stabia). Hehehe! Now, I'm going to get some sleep in a real bed, with a real mattress with the rain and cold outside .... Photos will come along later.


Oh, and Tim you suck! :)

Your puffy white hat, that is. The newest Carnival of the Recipes is up at Leaderladies.mee.nu.

It is the cereal killers edition, so say goodbye to cold breakfasts, and jump into something HOT! :)

That's a combo laugh-out-loud and zombie reference. If you've ever played Dead Rising you'll get it. If not, go get an X-box 360 and plug in the game - you WON'T regret it!

If you like Romero, the thoughts of slaughtering zombies with the most novel and interesting 'weapons' around, and you like toasting psychopaths ("survivors" driven nuts), this is the game for you. This has to be one of the most amusing screenshots from the whole game:



Yes, in this game legoish masks become weapons - either to look like a zombie, or to keep them from biting. You can wage war on zombies with books, signs, plants, pots, hell even a lipstick display! Screw the 'missions', just kill all the zombies.

Bwahahahahahaaaaiiinnnnssss!!

Or ready, set, go as we know it in the States. We're almost ready to depart for our Neapolitan mini-vacation ...

I've booked in where we'll be staying.

We'll literally be but 1 block from Pompeii.

I've booked in to see the Casa dell'Ara Massima with the folks that run the ruins.

I've checked the latest forecasts.

I'm totally caught up on the clothes (wow, that's a feat!) and the dishes.

I need to give the house a good once-over before we head out to make sure it will be clean when we get back.

I need to pack our stuff to go but that won't take too long, and can be done in a few days.

I need to bake, and freeze, a cake for the Sqd's Halloween stuff. It will happen while we'll be gone but they seemed to like the cake the last time I made it so...

I need to stuff, stuff, stuff some more goodies bags as I'm not done yet. I'm getting there, but still more to go/do.

The oldest's costume came in the mail, so we're all set for Trunk or Treat when it rolls around.

The dog will be staying here, which seems to 'discourage' certain illegal, unwanted visitors from breaking-and-entering our home.

We've got several of our fake pumpkins carved and ready to go. There are a few more we're going to carve but haven't finished yet. I'll post photos later, maybe not today though.

I'll send in notes to teachers to let them know what day(s) the heathens will be missing, tomorrow so that we can ensure they get their homework/missed schoolwork and get it done.

I need to pick up, or find their old ones, journals for our trip as I make them keep a written and pictographic record of where we go, especially if it interferes with their school schedule.

I think that's all for now ... At least until I realize I forgot something.

There is NO support, anywhere other than anti-religion sites (not Schulz's writings, drawings, interviews, his family, his museum, even Snopes) that supports your supposition that Schulz was teaching children God didn't exist, or that belief was wrong or bad. Quite the opposite actually, he stated that he thought it was funny to have small children confuse Halloween and Christmas, thus Linus and the Great Pumpkin were born.

In future, please check your sources, or better yet check the information on the people who supposedly spewed this crap in the first place. As much as you seem to need support in denial of divinity, Charles Schulz isn't your man. Don't use others as a crutch to support your own views, especially when they can be so easily disproven.

Feel free to check:

Charles M. Schulz Museum

Snoopy's Home

The Official Peanuts Site

Wikipedia's Great Pumpkin article

Snopes.com

Scambusters

& any number of other sites you can search out. Please refrain from claiming someone said or believed something, especially if they're dead and can't defend themselves, but doubly if they're dead and CAN defend themselves by a good search of their known beliefs, writings and such.

Who ever the hell told you Charles Schulz wanted to teach children not to believe in God was a moron, and a liar. I might be willing to forgive the moron, but not the liar. I despise intellectual dishonesty, especially when used again children, or things that are being twisted and blackened from people's childhoods. It amounts to brainwashing, and brainwashing the young will get my hackles up like very little else.

I made Avocado Ice Cream last night. Woah buddy! Let's just say I'll make sure to use extra ripe avocados next time, and cut down on the sugar content.

The heathens seemed to like it, so it wasn't a total waste. That and hubby said he'd eat some if I switched it up to make guacamole ice cream instead.

The recipe is worth the attempt, but it's a bit ... Out there at the same time.


Now I do have a question, can you make ice cream out of wine? If you do, would you seriously cut back the sugar in the mix??

1. Kurt I'm sorry, but there really is no accounting for total lack of taste in the food department. Barbacoa rules, though I got the standard "WTF" nose wrinkle from hubby when I suggested making some.

2. Wrong green man. I said Green Man, not Jolly Green Giant Man. This is the Green Man, husband to the Triple Goddess who's symbol resides in his foliage.


Hope that helps out a little.

Damn, I managed to find a recipe for Barbacoa. Otherwise known as heaven in a taco!

I even tracked down two very different crock-pot recipes for said heavenly taco filling. Other than hubby hates Barbacoa because he says it's greasy, I'd cook some up in a heartbeat. Hell, I'm even willing to build the big ol' hole and bury a cow head in it to get the good stuff!

While I grew up with the cheek-meat recipes, I've had the baa-baa ones too. They taste really different, but each with their own charms and good bits. I highly recommend you try to crock-pot methods if you aren't up to digging a hole and cooking it for 8 hours. If you do get a chance to get the REAL DEAL, the time is so very worth it. Your taste buds will dance in ways you never knew possible.

Now I'm really freakin' homesick!

Well, not really but it is the Great Pumpkin Carnival of the Recipes!

If you love pumpkin, boy are you going to love this week's carnival. And if you don't love pumpkin, the Great Pumpkin even remembers you with recipes for those who aren't fans of the orange fruit.

Anyone know where to get a few good graphics on the Green Man and Triple Goddess? Hubby was considering carving one of them into our perma-pumpkins for Halloween but we need to find good pictures of them. Yeah, that'll go over well no? A paganic symbol carved in a pumpkin in one of the most anti-pagan nations on Earth.

Sadly, I am unable to draw the divine properly, it seems there is always a masque or veil covering my mind when I attempt to depict them. Thus, I turn to my paganic, neo-paganic, Celtic and other readers for help. I know you're out there, and I know you may feel uncomfortable announcing your presence for various reasons. If you'd feel happier, please drop me an e-mail at: a _ t e x a n _ a b r o a d @ A T @ y a h o o . D O T . c o m (Shorten it to all one line (with underscores), and remove the multiple characters - sorry, spam bots and all.)

I finished up a few more sewing items and so now my sewing machine is packed away for another day.

I made my Stola.

I finished a new Palla and a new head covering. There is some debate as to if the palla should cover the hair as well, or be separate. Mine are separate, cuts down on pulling during movement.

Better examples, with photos can be found here, over here and one more for good measure - this one is from an archaeologist, worth the visit imo.


We filmed our "Holiday Greeting" this afternoon. I did the talking as hubby really didn't want to do it. He hates his 'monkey suit' as he sometimes calls it, and having to wear it on a Saturday, on what amounts to TV is not his idea of fun. The girls dressed themselves, so if any family or friends read this and then see our video remember - Mommy and Daddy did NOT dress those children!


We're headed up to Vicenza tomorrow. Still need black gloves for the middle one's costume - ain't no way in hell mommy is sewing them. AAFES here STILL has NO CHILDREN'S GLOVES!! I'm sorry but there is even less chance I'm footin' $21 for a pair of Isotoner ladies gloves for a 6 year-old to wear for Halloween. Ain't gonna happen! Nor is the just-under $22 that Military Clothing wants for "all purpose" ladies' small gloves. Nope, double nope, and triple nope!


I got 3 loads of dishes done today - yeah dishwasher! I have not folded any clothes, but they're clean and dry and that's part of the battle right there!


Okay, gotta get some sleep. Earlyish day tomorrow, but I hope ya'll have a great weekend and Columbus Day to boot!

Okay, I'm taking a break from sewing, gardening, stuffing Halloween goodie bags, etc. Thus, I'm taking stupid tests. So here we go ...

What artist are you? created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Artemisia Gentilleschi You are a tumultuous person who has the ability to channel your feelings into dramatic artworks. You are kick ass, an inspiration to women. Artemisia Gentilleschi 75% Piet Mondrian 70% Willem DeKooning 65% R. Crumb 60% Bob Ross 55% Vincent Van Gogh 50% William Blake 45% Cecily Brown 35%

Um, well, stupid me had to look her up. Boy do I feel dumb, she's a great classical artist who is in love with the female form. Top quality work in her Cleopatra, Self portrait, and Clio among many prominent, world-wide located others.. Go see what all she's got going for her, her talent is without doubt.




Alright I lied, I took the one quiz then sewed some more. Short of a bit of touch-up on some of the toppings edges - I'M DONE!!!!. Here is the 'finished' result ...



1 Pepperoni, Sausage, Onion and Mushroom pizza!!

Today the underworld opens again, and the Mania take their place of honor. I hope your thoughts turn to your loved and departed.

I feel like I'm trapped in a really bad, never ending Little Caesar's commercial. And I don't even get the bread sticks. We won't even discuss the "30 minutes or less" guarantee!

This is how far I've gotten on the pizza thus far. Hubby said it was looking good, though I can see all my screw-ups and diviations from the vision in my head. As long as littlest shit is happy, I guess mama will learn to be happy about it too.



I command you to ignore the mess that is my couch. It is all Halloween stuff - well, the Gordettos were actually my 'dinner' this evening as I was tired, they were close to hand and dang it, I can sew and eat them at the same time! That, and the school earns "Box Tops for Education" off 'em, yeah that's it, that's the ticket!

Elsewhere on the sewing front - I haven't even touched the zippers. I went to Alterations today and found out they'll replace zippers for $12 a zipper. I am SO tempted to just pay up and let the professionals do it!


Hubby has bought me two new pairs of Roman sandals. 1 is a short, ankle high pair and the second is a half-calf length. I'm anxiously awaiting them in the mail!


Okay, I'm going to go pass out now. I'll be up again in about 5 hours , 4 1/2 hours, something ungodly either way.

That's what I am, in a Pizza Costume with no pattern - well, I made one but hahaha, that doesn't mean it was done properly. I need to replace - GASP, yes, REPLACE - two zippers in jeans. This is NOT a task I look forward to, believe me.

I've signed up for when I'll be volunteering at the littlest one's class, made sure when and where Yoga is starting, and planned our little get-away to Naples. I'm planning on taking the heathens to Aquileia on Monday as it's a Fed holiday, but I don't know about down day.

I've finally broken hubby down so that we can do the Holiday Greetings this weekend. I need to call and schedule an appointment tomorrow, though walk-ins are welcome as well.

Off to sew some more...

Today marks the day of the Battle of Gonzales. The turning point between the Texicans and the Mexican government. Today is the day we went to war.

If you're in the area, stop by the Museum of Gonzales and take a look at the old "flying artillery". It was 'lost' for about 100 years, then finally recovered following a flood and eventually matched to old smith records. Today is has pride-of-place in the town that fought to keep it.

It will be 5 months, 5 bloody, hell-ridden, brutal months before we declare Independence at Washington-on-the-Brazos. Many good men, women and children will die or flee from their homes. This is the beginning, and we remember. This is the beginning, and we honor those who fought for us. This is the beginning, but what a beginning it is!

The new Carnival of the Recipes is up and ready to help you cook! This week's edition is "The Quotable Chef", being hosted by Everything and Nothing.

There's also a brand-new Carnival of the Recipes home page. You can find where to e-mail your recipe information (or volunteer to host), those who have volunteered, their themes and when to submit recipes by.

Now, get to cooking!