The World of Grandpa Don  

Obviously that is not from Covenant House and I do not endorse what it implies in what often occurs prior to marriage. It does remind me of the statement made by a child to a to a sibling  ... "Ma married Pa but we have to marry perfect strangers."

Tuesday evening my leftovers from Easter included ham, veggie casserole and potato casserole, a big change from the sweet potatoes of Monday. Oh yes, there was no more Jell-o left. I have been having hot cross buns for breakfast every morning, a gift from my big brother. My food bill this week will be almost nothing!   Wednesday evening's dinner was a repeat of Tuesday's. Thanks to the wonders of the microwave it was as good as the original sans the good company.

Thursday marked the return to Bible Study and the beginning of our consideration of Galatians and Romans. It fits right in with the book I am reading about Paul, Jesus and the Jewish beliefs and practices during the 1st Century. The Jewish people were trying desperately to retain their Identity under the rule of the Romans. Their living the Torah was more of an ethnic identity than a religion. But is was a way of life, not just a belief. And, it carried over to the early followers of Jesus who, of course were Jewish and had no desire to split from their heritage. We have a couple new members in this study group and it promises to be an interesting study.

I got an email from Marilyn Elbrecht (Prasse / Lossner) Zimmann, a newly discovered second cousin. When I first heard from her daughter I was confused thinking she was related to the Henry Zimmerman who was married to Cora Packard (1883- 1971) (My grandmother was a Packard) I wondered about the spelling of the name. Then I realized that Zimmann was her married name and there was no relationship there but rather through her parents. Elizabeth Lossner (b 1873) had married William Prasse and had a daughter, Lucille Henrietta Prasse. She and her husband  Elmer Theodore Elbrecht were Marilyn's parents. And of course, my mother was a Lossner. Don't worry, you don't need to remember all of that (even if you cared). I have a diagram of the entire relationship. However, one of the points of her email was that I said that the family lived in Euclid, Ohio. Wrong! It was South Euclid. Euclid is right on the shores of Lake Erie, the low lands while South Euclid is on the hill above. They are two distinct towns and not to be confused. I shall track down the page where I made the error and correct it.

When I went to Bible study I noticed a little white flag on my front lawn. My lawn guys must have come by on Wednesday and spread the spring fertilizer and weed treatment. It must be Spring! In the afternoon Thursday I made a circuit of the yard, picking up after Mikey. When I was through I sat on the swing for an hour, just soaking up the sun and reveling in the light breeze. This is more like it!

All three of the above quotes were at the bottom of one email. They just seem to belong together so I passed them on together..Gandhi reminds us that we all want to live in a better world, an ideal world, but we find ourselves in what we often call :the "real world" implying that perfection is impractical. Well, it is if we don't try. But if we really want something better, there is no point in wishing for it, It is up to each of us to go ahead and try, ... pretend if necessary, ...  and live our ideals. And, Einstein reminds us that an ideal world is one in which people care for each other so the best way to enter this perfect world is to be aware of the needs of others, to respect them and their differences. We don't need to do great deeds to change the world. Mother Teresa reminds us that it is the small things that make a big difference, particularly done with love. Go ahead, be brave, change just a little bit of the world. We can make a difference.

I had one slice of ham left from Easter. No potatoes ... no veggies ... what to do? I buy single serving beans in microwavable containers. After warming the slice of ham, I zapped the beans for 45 seconds. Then I put liquid egg beaters in a small bowl and nuked it for 2 minutes. The three combined made a great supper. You have to coat the bowel with Pam or the eggs will stick and don't be afraid when they puff up over the edge, the hot air goes away as soon as the microwave shuts off. The secrete of prolonging the use of leftovers is that on the day of the event, the food is not left on the table during the conversation that follows the meal but is refrigerated while still warm. That is followed by keeping the time out of refrigeration to a bare minimum when preparing subsequent meals. One of my friends got sick on Easter leftovers on Thursday. I had no such problem but enjoyed it to the last bite.

Tom sent this:

"Just a quick note and some photos of Caitlin and my trip to Pomona College.

After Easter Mass Sunday morning, The Plefka family headed to the airport, with Diane and Kelly going to Denver to check out schools for Kelly next year ( their report to be turned in after they get back this coming weekend). Caitlin and I flew to Ontario, CA. and then a short drive to Claremont, CA. the home of Pomona College.

The College had an Admissions Day Program on Monday, which started with an outdoor sign-in and continental breakfast. As we were waiting for the start of the first of the many events of the day, a gentleman walked up to us and introduce himself, "Hi I'm David Oxtoby, President of the the College" This was the first of many times to come that day, that I thought this is not your normal college. After a welcome by the President and the Dean of Admissions, the students went to classes as they should, and the parents went to a question and answer session with first a faculty panel, and then a current student panel. That was followed with a sit down lunch with faculty and students mixed in at all the tables. In the afternoon we were brought back together with our kids so we could choose from a selection of tours of the academic and residential facilities. Following the tours and closings the day, they had a departmental open house in the main court yard. We met with the swim coach after going to check out the pool, and Caitlin stayed with a girl Monday night in the dorms, who is on the swim team. Caitlin then went to a lab with this girl on Tuesday, before I picked her up in the afternoon to go to the airport to go home.

I can know see why Caitlin can't wait to start classes next fall."

Would you like to visit the campus?

Alex Kapocious sent a cartoon from the 1934 Sun-Times newspaper. Click on it to enlarge.

Alex also sent a new link to go on my "Inspiration" page. You can preview it here. The Secrete

I could add more to this page but I am running late. Suffice to say ....