Veteran's Day Thoughts

This is my favorite picture of Patrick in uniform. It was taken while he was at work several months before we were married. It makes me laugh every time I see it!


I never thought much about Veteran's Day until I met and married my husband. Like many people, I thought of it as just another holiday. Only two of my relatives had served in the military - my grandfather served in the Navy during World War II and my uncle served in the Army during the Vietnam War. Neither spoke much about their service, until I brought Patrick home.

My uncle Marty on occasion would reminisce about his Army years, but my grandfather didn't talk very much at all about his Navy service. So it was a great surprise the first time Patrick met my family and my grandfather began talking about his years in the Navy. My grandfather served as an officer during WWII as a Radioman - which just happened to have been Patrick's job. They talked for hours about the Navy, about how the duties of the Radioman had changed, and of course about the habits and port calls of young sailors. I remember how fascinated my mother was because she had never heard most of the stories her father was sharing. It was amazing to see my grandfather almost look relieved that he had found someone he could talk about his memories with - someone who understood what he was talking about.

Over the years, I have had the pleasure to meet some amazing veterans. I love to listen to them open up and talk about things that they may not have even thought about in years.

I have laughed with an amazing friend I made in Virginia who served for 30 years in the Marine Corps. He would tell me hilarious stories about his 3 tours in 'Nam. I know he had seen some horrible things, but he always was able to put a positive and fun spin on his memories. But I have also cried with a friend who came to me on the first day of the Gulf War with tears in his eyes as he described the horror and injustices that he and so many others faced when they came home after that very same war.

I am so proud of all of my veteran's - my husband, my family, my friends. Whether they spent a day in uniform, are retired or are still serving as a reservist or on active duty. I never had the strength of character to put my life on the line, but you did. For that, and for so much more, I thank you!

The following two quotes are actually the reason why I've been thinking about all of this today. They are posts that some of my military friends have posted as their Facebook statuses. Let's hope that we can remember these thoughts whenever we think of our brothers and sisters who are serving in the service.

I am a Veteran, and a Veteran is someone, who at one point in their life, wrote a blank check payable to the United States of America for an amount up to, and including, their life. Regardless of personal political views it is an honor to serve one's country, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer remember that fact.

It was completely my honor and my pleasure to do so. I would to it again in a New York Minute. So many before me that served with great honor never made it back from wherever they served. Many more did make it back in different iterations of themselves. I firmly believe that tomorrow, Veterans Day, is about those who gave the ultimate price or lost a significant part of themselves for our great country. Luckily, I was not in those categories. If you see an old vet, a wounded vet, or a vet that seems lost, go thank them, hug them or do something to make their day Thursday.

Last but not least are two quotes that I found for those of us who sat at home. We waited while our loved one's were out fighting to defend us. I personally think these quotes are not only for the military spouses, but also for all who loves their veterans.

“You are a patriot — the sort of citizen that all of us should be, but so few of us are. You live with sacrifice, because you believe in the rights and ideals that your husband defends. Although you wear no uniform, you are a part of that defense — a vital link in the chain of freedom. Although you wear no medals and will reap no glory on the field of battle, you are hero in the truest sense of the word. You are a military spouse.”(Gene Thomas, from the article “The Hardest Job in the Military”)

Missing someone gets easier everyday because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will. --Author Unknown.

Missing Seattle - Part 2 - It's for my Grandfather

The trip to Seattle was hard for many reasons - not only because we miss it so. We went to Seattle to lay my grandfather's ashes to rest. He passed away in August, but because many of the family were not in Seattle, we decided to wait a while to have any kind of ceremony. We layed his ashes to rest in the Puget Sound right under the cliff of his home on Whidbey Island. It was the same location that we layed Nana's ashes to rest almost 10 years ago.

When I began this blog not quite a month ago, I had no idea why I was starting it. I even thought of cancelling the whole thing, I mean who would want to read my random thoughts and recipes? But last week, while I was thinking of my grandfather it came to me. See, my grandfather and I had a lot in common. We both love fountain pens, books, reading and good food. And we both wanted to be writers. In his life he worked as an editor, a teacher and as a speech writer for McDonnell Douglas Corporation. I know as a young man he wrote poems, but I have no knowledge of anything else he wrote.

Ever since I can remember he would send me packages of newspaper and magazine clippings. Things he was saving for me that he thought I would be interested in. Invariably, he would send me the food articles from the Whidbey Island newspaper. He used to think I should start my own column on food. He wanted me to write a column for the Stars and Stripes, the military newspaper. He thought that my experiences and love of food would make for good reading. I never looked into writing an article for the Stars and Stripes because I don't have my degree in Journalism and I wasn't in the military, and I think you need one or the other to write for that particular publication!

I'm not sure when the idea that I could write a blog came about. I have been reading blogs for a while now, and don't know if I can do as good as some of my favorites. But, I am trying, for him. I didn't get a chance to cook for my grandfather as much as I would have liked because I was never in Seattle. I did get a chance to cook for him a few times, and my grandfather loves soup as much as I do! I remember making a huge batch of this stew, and filling his freezer so that he wouldn't have to cook.

(Originally posted January 20, 2009 - see my mistake)

Beef and Barley Stew

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 lb beef stew meat, cubed
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 can (14 1/2 oz) whole tomatoes, chopped and juices reserved
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon each dried basil, marjoram and thyme
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes (optional)
5 1/2 cups beef broth
1 cup water
4 potatoes, cubed
1 cup each chopped celery and carrot
3/4 cup barley salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add beef and cook until brown, stirring occasionally. Add onion and garlic and saute until onion is tender. Stir in all remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer for an hour and a half. Remove bay leaves and adjust seasoning before serving.