Signs of the Times

I'm so glad the election is over, maybe we can get back to rebuilding again. I felt pretty good about the way things went in my corner of the world. No matter where I drive, campaign signs are everywhere. My trip to town the other day I was noticing just how many signs people have put out this time. We've been living through one of the hardest recessions recorded... people have lost jobs, their homes and for many of us we've seen our savings dwindle. Lots of finger pointing going on with the politicians and for us, the voters...we had to weed through it all and decide who we think will represent us the best. Honest and responsible, proven record, lots of things to consider when choosing a person for office.

We've lived in this community for 5 years now, and you just take note of how officials vote. You remember if there has been any wrongdoing or decisions that you might have disagreed with. We are small town America and if you are a politician here, you better keep your "nose clean." I wouldn't say we don't forgive a man his faults, but we don't forget either.

Driving around Rogers the other day, I couldn't help but notice how many people proudly fly the American flag at their homes.

One of the many privileges we enjoy as an American is our right to display a flag.

It's a reminder everyday that we live in a country that still follows our founding Father's dreams for equality and justice.

No matter how you felt about the issues this election, the most important thing is that you exercised your right to vote. Change or not, it happens when we make the effort and vote.

We are so lucky to be able to fly this flag and all that it represents!

Kingswood Chicken Pie

I've found a new blog that I love! Glenda at Living and Gardening in the Ozarks has a unique way of blogging, she journals her days on her beautiful Missouri dairy farm. No longer a "working dairy," she and her husband still enjoy the perks of having a cow to milk. Somewhere between Chickens in the Road and Tales From the Coopkeeper, Glenda has so much knowledge that she shares through her tips, recipes and pictures...I learn something new every time I visit! 

Glenda shared a recipe for pie crusts that stir up in a second and make 6 crusts to put down in the freezer for the holidays that are just around the corner. She let me share this picture of a cherry pie she made with the recipe, doesn't this just make you want to go in the kitchen and stir up a pie for supper?  If you've never made pie crust, don't be a'skeered, it's not hard and the reward is money in your pocketbook and lots better than storebought pie!

I hadn't thought of the word pocketbook in a long time...Missouri girls call it a purse! We moved to Wilkesboro, North Carolina in the 1980's and as Southern as I talk...they could run me a race! Their accent was similar to mine, but different.

Wilkesboro was a beautiful little town in the NW corner of the state, the Blue Ridge Parkway was just a few miles away with it's breathtaking views of the smoky blue mountains. A transfer after Tyson bought Holly Farms Foods took us to this gorgeous part of the country. We only lived there a year, but we spent our time wisely sightseeing and tasting our way through NC!

One of the things I remember the most about Wilkesboro was the many, many roads out there named for churches. Brushy Mountain Baptist Church Road, Welcome Home Baptist Church Road, Brown's Temple Road and Moravian Falls Church Road. Which reminds me of another great thing about North Carolina, Kingswood Chicken Pie that the Moravian Falls Church made for fundraisers.The Wilkes Journal- Patriot printed the recipe and I couldn't wait to make it. I clipped out the recipe and glanced over the ingredients. I looked twice and re-read, it had to be more than this...that's not enough ingredients for a proper Chicken Pie. But I was thinking Midwest Pot Pie and this was Moravian Chicken Pie. The Moravians settled in the area a century ago and they are famous for this dish made with not much more than chicken, chicken broth, flour, and butter. It's a meat pie, just simple comfort food.

Kingswood Chicken Pie
(clipped from the Wilkes Journal-Patriot Oct. 1989)

Pastry:
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup Crisco
8 tbsp cold water
Mix into soft dough. Handle as little as possible. Roll out half the dough to fit a greased pie plate.

Filling:
3 cups finely chopped chicken
1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cup chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste

Place chicken in the crust, sprinkle with flour and pour chicken broth gently over the filling. Cover with top crust, pinch edges of crust together to seal and flute around the edges. Bake at 375 F oven for 60 minutes until golden brown.

Being Social

I've been on the phone a lot the last few days, talking mostly to machines... in

Menu H-E-double L.

With all of the modern conveniences we enjoy, it shouldn't be so hard to connect with a human on the phone. Sometimes you just need a human to straighten things out.

It's the same thing when I go shopping. I get in line, load my groceries on the belt and if that checker even notices I'm there...she doesn't say a word. Not all the time, but often anymore. And while I'm griping about things, I want to say that little shopping bag merry-go-round where they sack our groceries has to be one of the poorest excuses for efficiency and service known to mankind. I can't tell you how many times I end up at home without my vitamins, or that tube of lipstick that I took 45 minutes picking out. Sometimes it's something really important like the pint of Ben and Jerry's. That gets me all upset and I just had to vent, did I ever tell you that you are a great listener?