Romania Trip Day 2

Second day of the trip brought us to the VGR Romanian Library office.

To the believers here, it is their together home.

 It was honestly quite fascinating and humbling to see the produce of what my father and grandfather had been working hard at all of these years.

Can you read the Romanian titles and tell me the names of the sermons?

That day also happened to be Sister MiMi's birthday.  She reminded me a lot of my own grandmother.

Unfortunately, she spoke Romanian, Hungarian, and Russian.  I only spoke English.  So I was able to say very little to her.

I quickly learned the word "pace" (Pronounced: Pach-eh) which means "Shalom, peace" and is both a greeting and farewell among the believers there.

It's too hard to teach an American how to say God Bless you, so they quickly taught us "Pace".

God Bless you is said: "Domnul sa te binecuvanteze"

10 times fast now.

God be with you is said:  "Domnul cu tine."

Mimi' daughter, Sister Mirella and her husband and children came all the way from Sicily to visit.  Sister Mirella worked at the Library for many years before she got married and moved to Sicily.

Look at all of the fine fattening things they served us for Mimi's party!

I liked the olive bread and the vanilla cream crepes (front)

They showed us their photo albums and I found a familiar picture!  My dad must have brought a picture of the recording shack when he went to the VGR Romanian office dedication and opening in 2004.  

My father sharing personal things with his friends.

This brother was in town (having traveled 9 hours with his son and daughter) to visit his other daughter who was injured in the car accident when coming home from the youth camp.  Her face was broken and she would have to come back months later to have the screws removed.  

She was not released from the hospital the next day, so they stayed in town an extra day and fellow-shipped with us.

This was my favorite song that he played- (the opening especially)
They are very good singers but I could not share all of the videos we took.

I took a photo of the pyramid out front lining up with the roof.

It amazed me to finally be in a place I had seen pictures of for so long. ...and so many years later.








It's not the best picture, but it was all I could do without the sun blinding me.

 I thought this was a nice perspective on the pyramid.

Grapes were growing on the gas tanks behind the library.  In Romania, grapes are called "Struguri."  One grape is called "Strugu."


They were very very sweet, delicious grapes.
And they had seeds, just like grapes ought to.

Why buy expensive grapeseed oil when you can just chew up the seeds and swallow them? o.O

This is the van Brother Joseph rented for Brother Alin to taxi us around in.

 Brother Alin took us to the village where he lives.  There were a few gypsies in the village.

 See how the Romanian folk decorate their gates and houses?

Most of the building are stuccoed.

Anything with brick showing is considered unfinished...
unless of course, they created fancy designs in the brick.

All of the trees have whitewashed trunks in Romania.

They whitewash once a year because it is believed to keep pests from attacking the trees.

We passed many prune trees laden with ripe, purple prunes.  We picked and ate a few and of course, they were very delicious.    

 Here is the village well... with some water abandoned by it.

Gypsies going to town with their horse and wagon.

Here is a Stork's nest, built on a wagon wheel placed on top of a power pole.

I never saw the storks. I thought i was strictly a Holland-sh...thing.

This is where the poor gypsies live.  See their wagon?

I had to zoom and the quality zummed.  :P

Pidgeons on the roof of an unfinished old house.

Gypsy women and their geese.

A very ornate concrete fence

Gypsy goats.  Esmeralda's Djahli??

A gypsy sheepdog

Later that afternoon we were taken to another nice restaurant.

And served platters of Metetae, Schnitzel, and other fine meats

This was from the beginning of the day, taken from the balcony of the hotel room.  Everyday life in Timisoara, Romania

My Romanian Trip

 This was my very first time flying.  The rush of take-off draws a smile on my face every single time.  

This is a remote view of north Mobile from the air.  Not a care in the world up here.  The world's problems suddenly look so small and insignificant.  

 We landed in Chicago at the O'Hare international Airport.  A nice black man who worked for the airport directed us to the walking tunnel of lights because he wanted us to enjoy it. I am glad we did.
I really like the fast walk lanes.  I did a silly circle jig dance while moving backwards on the fast lanes.  Unfortunately, I did not get footage of this rare moment.  :P

Then we ate in a cafeteria and waited for our next flight.

I got another wing seat.  Honestly, my favorite seats because I like to see the plane's wings.

 We flew even higher in this Boeing 767. An approximate altitude of 39,000 feet.  That is about 7 miles....almost.

We flew higher than any storms and I realized that above the storms, the sun is ALWAYS shining.

 We flew up over Quebec and somewhere up there as night fell, I saw a lightning storm in the North.  It lit up the clouds magnificently.  I enjoyed it for a while before trying to sleep.

You cannot sleep while sitting up.....

 When morning finally came we were somewhere over England.  It was cloudy when we flew over Ireland unfortunately.  I watched as we crossed the English channel and saw Holland.

This was either over England or Holland.

 When we landed at airport in Munich, Germany, it was very cold and wet.  The German airport is as quiet as a library, but Germany was a very orderly country.

The flight to Timisoara was short.  The airfield was rundown and looked as though WWII had just happened.  The airport stunk of cigarette smoke.  The passport police never smiled and stared at everyone suspiciously.  I was not comfortable about being in Timisoara.

At last, Brother Alin Muntean and his father, Brother Petru, and his wife Sister Mimi and their daughter Mierella and her husband Marco, and their children Jeremiah and Maria all met us in the airport.

They gave us mineral water and took us to our hotel.  Carbonated mineral water is only good cold.  Romanians do not understand A/C like American's understand A/C.

The above photo and the side photo --
were the view from the window of our hotel.

The Pensiunea Normandia was not a Patel operation.  Southern Hospitality has nothing on European hospitality... but Southern Hospitality is still the closest thing to it.

Every restaurant in Romania serves on Porcelain plates and in Porcelain cups and gives you a real metal plate.
They serve Non-GMO food and unpasteurized cheese and milk.  Pictures to come..... :D

The brothers took us out to eat.  This was my first taste of Romania.

raţă

Romanian word for Duck

Piept de raţă

Meaning Breast of Duck

It was good, of course, smothered in pears, honey, and cream...but I was already so full from the appetizer courses...

 The normal ones of us were jet-lagging and thinking of nothing but soft fluffy pillows and the supine position....
A few others of us were just too excited and stayed up fellow-shipping until midnight.  So I was denied sleep for approximately 28 hours.

Anyway, here is the historic square of Timisoara.  The opera house...

 

 is where the dictator of the communist party would stand and give his speeches.  It is now just an opera house, still in use.  But with bullet holes from the rebellion on its facing, and pigeons living in its crevices.

 People walk the square in the evenings and at night.  No one worries about their children getting kidnapped and everyone is calm and peaceful.

Everyone feels relaxed.  Romania has a much different spirit than the United states.

 The town is very very old, dating around the 1700's.  It looked very much the same when my dad lived there and my grandparents grew up there.

This orthodox church was built in the 1960's on 16,000 wood pilings so that it could be moved.  Why you would move a church, I am not sure.

What this church is best known for is closing its doors upon the people rebelling against the communist government.  The steps were bathed in blood.

 Mint Lemonade is some pretty rad stuff.

We were way too tired to be up till midnight our first day in Romania...especially after not having been able to lay down and sleep for 24 hours prior....
Needless to say I was not a happy camper.  Blessed to have such caring hosts but...really?

They tried to fatten me up the very first day.
And they continued to fatten us each and every other day.

This is a very good donut smothered in real berries and cream.

 We posed in-front of the fountain.

I really like this fountain.  It changes colors.

My dad played in this fountain and my grandfather did also.

I particularly like the fish.














This footage concludes my first day in Romania.
The first thing we learned to say on this day was "apa plata." or "flat water" (water flat is the exact translation).  It took us a while to appreciate the carbonated mineral water, which is only good when it is icy cold.

Essays of an Enigma, and Worse a Woman : I Feel, Therefore I Am

Essays of an Enigma, and Worse a Woman : I Feel, Therefore I Am

June 4, 2014 at 9:02pm

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I've been told that feelings aren't real. If you wish to disagree you will either be wrong, or.... I only "thought" I loved you.
This isn't really a battle of mind over feeling; but taking the two words "emotion" and "logic" let us compare them.

Emotion comes from the French "emovere" which means to stir up, agitate, move. Logic on the other hand is simply cognitive thought or reasoning. As far as thinking and using your head can get you in life it will never take you as far as feeling will.

I plead my case. It is well understood that you were not created using logic. Both of your parents acted upon feelings. And the process of your birth did not come about by logic.... It was very full of emotion. You are a work of art. You are inspired. You are a product of emotion- not logic. You were not thought into existence. You were felt.

If I were to simply think or reason that I was hungry after having consumed three cheeseburgers - I highly doubt I would be able to consume a fourth. But if I were to feel that I were still hungry, I would absolutely help myself to a fourth. Feelings are real. Logic is just a crutch for those who have not yet mastered the art of feeling.

"I feel therefore I am." If only Emerson had been gifted with the ability to feel he would have mastered logic. Instead he thought too much and felt too little. Computers are programmed to think, pattering our computing brains. But they are dead objects. They have no emotion, just the logic you taught them. Anything without emotion is dead. Emotion is a driving force, a dynamism, a motive that pushes us to act.

As far as what is and what isn't, I can ask you to think that you are standing in water and no matter how much thinking you accomplish you will not really experience any water against your skin. But if I set you in the bathtub and fill it with water you will feel it. Once you have felt it, you will then and only then will you be able to think properly.

I can also try to convince you to think that a potted cactus is sitting on the table next to you. Logically it is not but you are thinking that it is. Reach out and touch where your logical cactus is. Did you feel anything? Doubtful, unless you are a hypnotist or a wizard. Now allow me to set a potted cactus on the table. Feel it. Once you have felt it you will have experienced emotion and have found logic. There really is a potted cactus next to you. You didn't think it was there until you felt it.

So to those of you who joust under the banner of logic: you may continue "only thinking" that you love someone, while the rest of us "really feel" that we do.

Signed
The enigma, and worse a woman
Scorpio moon, Scorpio rising.

Words are emotions, not thoughts. Thoughts make noise in your head. Emotions make noise everywhere else in the world- in color, texture, taste, and sound. ~ Laurisa Borlovan

Tweasure

My about me mentions that I enjoy "collecting" treasure.  As an artist I like to surround myself with beauty. Artist are generally very altruistic and philanthropic, but I might just have a touch of "hoarder" in me too.  

I seem to be amassing this treasure... filling a sort of aerie with things I hope to take with me into married life.  I've always wanted a hope chest.  I'm going to need a hope truck soon.  Come quickly Mr. Right!  

My life is by no means cluttered.  If you know me, everything has a place and is always IN Its place.  But I've been blessed with wonderful things wonderful people have given me, and wonderful things I've purchased for.... modest sums.  Seriously modest sums... like this is marble or onyx Turkish tea set that normally runs $150. 

An elder lady sold it to me at a yard sale for $15.  No, I didn't leave the zero off, I mean FIFTEEN dollars.  Like how did that happen? 

I'm thrilled.  Yes, yes, earthly tweasures will pass away.  Lay not up tweasure for yourself on earth.... 

I know, but this stuff just seems to fall into my hands.  I don't go looking for this stuff.  I didn't even know what a Turkish tea set was until the elder lady told me.  How fortunate that she wanted to give it to me for $15.

 Now.... where to store it until my new life as a wife...












One of my latest obsessions has been gem and stone pyramids.  I wish so badly that I could have one of the wooden layered ones like the brothers did at the Creations class recently-- with the church ages and messenger names burned on, but these rocks are pretty neat!

The collection started with the white marble one.  Then I decided to add a natural color crystal.... and then I stumbled across da BIGGA von which has four marble layers.  Gorgeous.

God sure put a lot of beauty into His rocks.  There are so many different kinds of marble, jasper, onyx, and.... the list is endless.

Maybe it's a pointless collection for some, but they are fascinating to me.  Sometimes, when I am sitting in my room, they will catch my eye.  And every time they make me think of beautiful Mt. Zion, the city of God.  I try to imagine what it might look like, that beautiful city with it's precious walls and gates and foundations.

They make me long for home.  My tweasure is where my heart is.  And this tweasure...makes me think of the glory of what will be.... when we've reached eternity.


Signed,

Your lady gryphon

Friday the 13th: Goldie-Locks and the Cheshire Cat

I'm getting OLD!!  I turned 22 this week, and since it fell on a Wednesday, most people were shocked that I spent the afternoon in church instead of "doing something wild" or "celebrating."

What was weird, is that my family got around to celebrating on this Friday the 13th.  There happened to be a full moon tonight, which wont happen again until 2049.  I need to see if the Vatican was doing anything special this Friday the 13th.

As many of you know, of course I'm not superstitious.  Hardly.  But I got this crazy idea, since I had a leftover canvas and paint from a project, to paint this money-scheme.... If I did what the superstitious would NEVER attempt....and DARE to paint a picture on Friday the 13th!...some creepy person out there might buy the painting for... a WHOLE LOTTA MONEY!

Anyway, It took forever to settle on what to paint.  I didn't want to do anything weird...  You might think this is weird.  It arouses my morbid humor.  This painting... is what I see Friday the 13th to be. ....a sneaky little creature going around saying Boo! making people fear the day.

I started with little sketching.  The behind picture- I did not feel comfortable with.  The moon was in Sagittarius tonight -- and I don't like Centaurs myself, but the Bible in the Stars states that the constellation is really a Centaur-- a representation of the two natures of Christ.
Brother Branham did say God's other Bible was in the stars, but I wish we could have had a Christ centered astrology lesson from Him because I would love to know if the Centaur image is pure, or Babylonian influenced.  It's interesting nonetheless.

But I saw a cat.  A sneaky little trickster cat.

This was only my fourth oil painting in my entire life, and I think I'm getting the hang of it.  They're so much fun and there's so much you can do with them.  I've never done dark pictures before... so working with a full moon and hazy gray scale was interesting.  

That's me....letting my right arm do it's thing.

It kind of looked like a black cat at first.  

And then it started to look like bad luck had struck.  

Like pink toothpaste or taffy.

Or red velvet cake. 

So then I got dragged inside for a birthday party... my party.

This year, I got two presents.  That's big.

I had NO idea...what was about to happen.  I was blond...and clueless.

I was made to open mysterious packages.

DOOMED!  It was worse than I had anticipated!

This wig...is a major inside joke...on me.

The hub was wonderfully appreciated.

So after the party, I photographed the finishing touches.  I'm not sure where the inbetweens are...you kind of get swept away in the fervency of creating.

Alice in Wonderland is not a story or film I would show my kids... it's just weird.  But I'm familiar with it from school studies and the Cheshire Cat is mad, the maddest of them all, and proud of it.  And so he represents this sneaky, greasy, sly day that people fear.  Just like the devil, he slinks around causing fear and apprehension.  When you see him....are you scared?

I decided to pose with it under costume... I know, weird. Blonds sell products.  Maybe I'll use this picture to help sell the painting in the future.

Ok, I was kidding.  Not blond FOREVER.  So that is how I painted Friday the 13th.  It is finished, but still drying.  I will sign it on the back once it is dry and hopefully, sell it as an original...for a lot of money.

And this is the book cover I've been working on.  It's still drying too.  I'll add gold and shadow to the lettering to make it stand off the page once it dries. Then I can look forward to publishing my second book, which I hope will be the first of a wonderful epic fantasy series.  I call it fantasy-- it is in actuality a Christian allegory as I cannot work with characters without worrying about their souls-- 

Seriously!  How can you write about a character and never deal with their soul?! I can't.  So it's an allegory but it'll be listed under fiction/fantasy as publication limits classification categories.  

There is a Lion named Aridai, and a special Sword (The King's Sword) named Aedrhem, and a white eagle named Ruel, which means Friend of God.  But I wont ruin the story for you.  I hope to have it published by September of this year.

So for now, the blond wig hangs in my closet.  I'll pull it out for my next madcap idea...

Signed,

Your Blond

Coconut Cake

Isn't it strange?: How a guy can find favor in a good woman's eyes and the first thing she wants to do is feed him?

You find out he likes Coconut and you say to yourself, "The first dessert I'm going to make him is a coconut cake!" .....

Must be a mothering instinct shining through-- not that we might pity him.  His mother is likely a cook to learn from.

But there's something wonderful about finding out that your palates, if not somewhat complimentary, are entirely compatible.   That's your favorite food?  Mine too!!

What?!  You like shrimp all different ways?  Me too?!  Spicy food?!  AWESOME!

Cooking is an art, so naturally I will do well.  It's also a lot like writing a story or composing a song for the taste buds.  You put in all the right spices and ingredients to hold the eaters interest and the textures are like the verbs guiding the tongue over the landscapes of beautiful worlds.  It really is amazing.

I want people to explore my world through cooking.  Each culture has something to offer in their cuisine. My favorite one to offer is Gumbo, not that I'm Cajun- though I may look it- but it's one of my favorite dishes and everyone simply has to try it.

If I can cook and share the meals I like to cook, I can let you taste my world.  It's the "god-author" in me coming out again.  I don't just like control.  I really want you to see the same beautiful things I experience every day.


Bon Appetite
Your Roux Chef

My Old Dream

I know it's been forever since I posted last.  But there was a computer switchover and stuff and all the other crazy things that have been going on in my life that have prevented me from wood burning like I used to.  But I'm still being productive.

This year's excitement was purchasing some spring riding lessons- which are as of today....over for the summer.  Bummer.  It's just too hot down here to ride in the summer apparently.

This is me, on Old Joe.  Joseph is his real name.

He's an old booger sometimes but know-it-alls age just like the rest of us saps.

My instructor tells me I'm a natural and I seemed to catch on very quickly.  I can't wait to come back in the fall and ride again.  It's not just my dream for me.  It's my dream for others.  EVERYONE needs to learn to ride.  If you haven't, you haven't lived.

Cows and Corn are two are my favorite smells. (that and the wheat stalks near my bed).  I love riding down a country road smelling the air and catching wiffs of ripening corn and grazing cows.  Its beautiful.  It makes you feel whole.  I come alive out in the country.  That's where my heart yearns to be.


Nickers,
Your Horsey-girl