MrsDrPoe: Strawberry Huller

Happy Foto Friday to all! This post is definitely not as adventurous as the previous ones since my summer trips (NC, PA, Japan, Gulf Shores) are finished, but I hope that you'll find it helpful.

As we've talked about earlier this week, summer time is coming to a close, and for all of us who love good deals, the time for buying dirt cheap summery items is quickly approaching. With that in mind, I thought I'd share some information an a summer kitchen gadget that I have fallen in love with this summer (and hopefully will be on sale at a store near you sometime soon): the Strawberry Huller.

To use, you simply push down the green top to extend and open the metal claws of the device. Insert the claws into the strawberry over the leaves:


Push in slightly, release the green top, and twist:


Pull the huller out of the strawberry, pushing the the green top again to release the leaves, etc.:


The huller is easy to use, plus it removes the leafy stalk part of the strawberry completely without much waste and allows for a whole strawberry at the end of the process. It does seem a bit flimsy, however, and since I've only had it for one summer, I'm not sure what the life expectancy of the tool is. Occasionally while twisting, I've had to keep my finger and thumb on the body of the device (see second picture) to keep the claw shut.

Despite the negatives, I would definitely recommend snatching this gadget up if you see it on sale. It helps tremendously when you're dealing with fresh strawberries!

MrsDrPoe: Bible Adoption Challenge

Happy Theology Thursday to all! School beginning and summer quickly coming to a close means that the Summer Bible Reading Challenge is almost over as well. How did you do? I hope you were all able to keep up with the reading schedule you picked for yourselves and that going through whatever plan you chose helped you grow spiritually in both your personal study and your study with others!

Since we're now in the habit of reading a portion of God's word daily (whether we were before or not), I propose another challenge: adoption of a Bible book. This idea is not my own; our friend, Mr. Holley, has been suggesting it to serious Bible students for years. In fact, Mr. Holley suggests the eventual adoption of multiple books (one from the OT and one from the NT, to start).

The process of adoption is relatively simple- you choose a book that you wish to adopt, read that book as much as possible (at least once a week), and simultaneously collect and read other books (commentaries, etc.) on your book. By the end of a year, you will have read your adopted book at least 52 times and added several reference books to your theological library. Another suggested "tool" for better understanding your book is to find someone else who has studied your book a lot; this person can help answer your questions, provoke new lines of thought, and suggest materials and references that will help you in your study. It also helps to start a reading-the-Bible-through-in-a-year program while you're "camped out" in your adopted book. This way you'll make connections with your book and the rest of the Bible and vice versa...it's like using the Bible as a commentary on itself!

Perhaps one of the best places to start is to try to adopt one of the gospels (although you may wish to read through all four multiple times before settling on one- you may set a goal of having a book chosen by Jan 1 and then spending a whole calendar year on it). Mr. Holley's book is Luke; Mr. Ellis' book is Mark; Mr. Poe has also adopted Mark. One benefit to starting with a gospel is that improved study of these books will automatically provide you with a method for sharing the story of Jesus. It's amazing how many questions can be answered from camping out in a gospel, taking the passages in context of the whole book instead of just a paragraph.

On a personal note: for the past few months I've been trying to decide on a gospel that I wanted to be "my" book...I'm currently studying Mark and Luke, but I also really like the idea of starting at the beginning with Matthew, and Mr. Holley suggested John because it bridges Matt and Mark with Luke. I plan to read through them all again before I make my decision...I'll let you know how that goes.

If you'd prefer to start elsewhere, that's cool too- the same procedure is used. The goal of course is to continue to adopt books, spending a year (or two) on in-depth study in each one, slowly building your Bible knowledge, faith, and relationship with Christ, brothers and sisters, and the lost. Just think of how many books you could immerse yourself in in a lifetime! I guess I'm not just challenging you (and myself) to a program for the upcoming year, but for all the years to come...are you up for it?

MrsDrPoe: Easy Ice Cream Cake

Once again we've come to What's for Dinner Wednesday, and once again I've decided to share a recipe with you that's merely a component of dinner...unless you want a stomach ache. The general concept of building an ice cream cake in this fashion came from my mother, and I must say that I greatly prefer an ice cream cake that actually contains cake to one that is just molded and iced ice cream. So without further ado:


Ingredients: 1-2 cakes (baked and unfrosted, any flavor and shape), 1 quart softened ice cream (any flavor), 1 bag powdered sugar, 1 quart heavy whipping cream, 1 stick softened margarine or butter, and food coloring (optional).

To begin the process, I made 2 9" round Cookie and Cream cakes from Williams Sonoma mix that Mama Wolgemuth gave me. If you prefer to have a smaller ice cream cake, you could make a single cake in a 9" round pan, 13x9 pan, or a loaf pan and cut this single cake in half (so that you end up with 2 cake circles half the height of the original cake, etc.). Any flavor* cake works fine, so please make this recipe your own! After the cakes have cooled, wrap them in plastic wrap, and place them in the freezer for an hour (this step can be skipped).

To soften the ice cream, set it out for approximately 15 minutes. Then take one of the cakes (or cake halves) and place it on a plate. Using a spoon and a spatula, scoop the softened ice cream onto the cake, smoothing and leveling as you go:


Use as much of the ice cream as you would like (I used a whole quart of cookies and cream* with my two cakes), again making sure that the top of the ice cream is level when you've finished with this layer. Then place the second cake (or half) on top of the ice cream, pressing down slightly. Immediately cover and place in the freezer for 15-30 minutes so that the ice cream refreezes in form.

In the meantime, make the icing by adding about 1/2 the whipping cream into your mixer bowl. Turn the mixer on med-high and let it run until the cream becomes thicker and fluffy (whipped cream). Then add in the softened butter and mix until incorporated. Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and combine. From here, you can alternately add sugar and the liquid cream by 1/4 cups and tablespoons, respectively, until the icing reaches a consistency and sweetness that you like. (You probably won't use all the cream or sugar- be sure to taste as you go!)

When the icing is how you like it, separate and color as you so desire (I left some white and colored some green). Pull the cake out of the freezer and use a spatula to cover it with a layer of icing:


Pay attention to the ice cream layer, as it may begin to melt around the edges before you finish with the icing. If this happens, carefully place the cake back in the freezer for 5 minutes or so, then pull it out and resume icing. When you're finished with this first layer, put the cake in the freezer for about 10 minutes.

Next comes the fun part- the decorating. Of course the cake shouldn't be out of the freezer for an extended period of time, so if your planned method of decorating takes more than 5-10 minutes, make sure you take plenty of breaks and set the cake in the freezer so it will stay firm. My favorite method for this cake is freehand, silly-string patterns around the top edges and simple dots or scallops around the bottom edge:


I haven't had cake recently, and this easy Ice Cream Cake is perfect for the dog days of summer, so I figured you might like to fix it with me for dessert this week. I hope you enjoy!


*Some other great cake/ice cream flavor combos:
vanilla/vanilla, vanilla/chocolate, vanilla/cookies and cream, chocolate/chocolate, chocolate/rocky road, strawberry/strawberry cheesecake, yellow/sweet corn, lemon/lemon sherbert, etc.

MrsDrPoe: Ms. Looney

For the next installment of Poes' Pals, I'd like to introduce you to our friend...Ms. Looney:


Unlike her name might suggest, Ms. Looney is not crazy. She is, however, a very kind, intelligent, and godly woman. We met her during our time at State when she came to services with another friend of ours. Our friendship has grown over the years; although, I wish we could've spent more time together in Starkville.

One of my favorite memories of Ms. Looney is from the summer I started a knitting circle with all the young women of the local congregation. Of all the ladies that came, I think Ms. Looney is the only one who continued knitting after the summer ended. She was quick to pick up the art, and, although her projects began with scarves, they increasingly grew in difficulty.

Knitting is certainly not all Ms. Looney is about, though. Whenever a Bible study, singing, or general get-together with Christians is happening (and her busy schedule allows it), Ms. Looney is there. She's quick to invite others to Bible studies too- both with the congregation and the Holley's Luke study. Not only that, but she just finished her masters degree in Speech Pathology from the Mississippi University for Women, and with her degree, I know she will help lots of folks in a way that few others could.

We miss Ms. Looney and the rest of the gang from Starkville, and highly suggest that if you're ever near the area, you pop in for a visit!

MrsDrPoe: Conservation of Momentum, Part III

Once again Thesis Tuesday is upon us, so we'll be continuing our discussion of the Conservation of Momentum equation. Today we'll change gears a bit, moving toward examination of the differential form of the momentum equation. When I taught this introductory fluid mechanics class, this form of the equations was the most loved and most hated at the same time by my students- loved because it was much simpler to work with and hated because I always made them start from the full form of the (inviscid or viscous) equation and tell me why they ended up with the final result.

Recall that the linear momentum equation is actually a vector equation that is composed of 3 scalar equations (for a 3D problem). The differential (scalar) form of the linear momentum equation is:

d/dt(rho*u) + u*d/dx(rho*u) + v*d/dy(rho*u) + w*d/dz(rho*u) = rho*gx + d/dx(Sxx) + d/dy(Txy) + d/dz(Txz) + sum(Fx)

d/dt(rho*v) + u*d/dx(rho*v) + v*d/dy(rho*v) + w*d/dz(rho*v) = rho*gy + d/dx(Tyx) + d/dy(Syy) + d/dz(Tyz) + sum(Fy)

d/dt(rho*w) + u*d/dx(rho*w) + v*d/dy(rho*w) + w*d/dz(rho*w) = rho*gz + d/dx(Tzx) + d/dy(Tzy) + d/dz(Szz) + sum(Fz)

We've discussed each of the components in these equations before except for the S and T terms. These terms are ones from the stress tensor/matrix- S represents the normal stresses on a fluid due primarily to pressure forces; T represents the shear stresses on a fluid due primarily to the viscosity of the fluid. These stress terms reduce to different forms depending on whether we are dealing with a viscous or an inviscid fluid. Today we'll examine the viscous fluid equations.

The viscous form of the momentum equations is achieved by applying Stokes' postulates:

1) Each stress component is a linear function of strain rate (Newtonian)
2) The properties of a fluid are isotropic (not varying with direction)
3) when all strain rates are equal to zero, hydrostatic pressure is the only stress present

and Stokes' assumption:

lambda = -(2/3)*mu, where lambda is the bulk viscosity (related to the volumetric dilatation of the fluid) and mu is the viscosity

These allow the stress terms in the equations above to be rewritten as:

d/dx(Sxx) + d/dy(Txy) + d/dz(Txz) = -d/dx(p) + mu*(d/dx(d/dx(u))+d/dy(d/dy(u)) + d/dz(d/dz(u)))

d/dx(Tyx) + d/dy(Syy) + d/dz(Tyz) = -d/dy(p) + mu*(d/dx(d/dx(v))+d/dy(d/dy(v)) + d/dz(d/dz(v)))

d/dx(Tzx) + d/dy(Tzy) + d/dz(Szz) = -d/dz(p) + mu*(d/dx(d/dx(w))+d/dy(d/dy(w)) + d/dz(d/dz(w)))

Placing these expressions in the initial differential form of the momentum equation gives us the Navier Stokes Equations. What these scalar equations physically represents is:

Left side- "mass times acceleration" of a fluid particle (per unit volume)

Right side-
First term- force of gravity of a fluid particle per unit volume; if positive, this terms acts to accelerate the particle in the +x-direction

Second term- pressure difference across the fluid particle; if negative, than this term acts to accelerate the particle in the +x-direction

Third-fifth terms- viscous stresses acting on the fluid particle; if sum is positive, than this group acts to accelerate the particle in the +x-direction

Sixth term- any other forces (support, etc.) per unit volume acting on the fluid; this term is often neglected

By combining these equations with the continuity equation, we can provide a complete mathematical description of the flow of an incompressible, Newtonian fluid: 4 equations allows us to solve for 4 possible unknowns (p, u, v, and w). If we have exactly four unknowns, our problem is well-defined. Fewer and our problem is over-defined; more (unknown external forces, etc.) and our problem is ill-posed and we cannot solve it unless more information is obtained.

These equations may seem a bit intimidating, but remember, we can always employ simplifying assumptions in order to obtain a more manageable set. In fact, that's what we'll look at next week- application of the Navier Stokes Equations. So until next time, happy studying!

MrsDrPoe: Sweet Deals, 8/14

It's Monday Monday here at the blog. There are a couple of deals at my "normal" stores I'd like to share with you today:

Kroger
Milk 1/2 gallons B1G1 (Sunday - Monday)

Check out some Mega Event deals here.

Wags
Pert Shampoo ($3.99) - $3 back in RR, $1 Q in SS 8/14 (makes it free)
Revlon Nail Polish ($3.99) - $3 back in RR, $1 Q in SS 8/14 (makes it free)

CVS
Scan your CVS card at the kiosk this week to get coupons for free stuff- I got bandaids and a Caramello bar. I also got a $3 off $15 in groceries coupon (the free Gatorade GFit this week counts toward the $15 grocery total).


My purchase: 1 Caramello bar, 2 boxes Nature Valley Granola Bars, 2 boxes Fiber One bars, 1 box CVS bandaids 20 ct, 5 GFit 02 drinks.

Total Regular Price: $30.18
Total Sale and Qs: $18.54
Total ECBs used: $7
Total OOP: $4.64
ECBs back: $5

MrsDrPoe: Gulf Shores

It's Foto Friday- Gulf Shores edition! Last weekend, Mama and Papa Poe invited us down for a weekend at the beach. They had gotten a really good deal on a house in Foley that the owners are renting out until they can sell the place. Mama Poe made us some tasty meals, as did the Fish River Grill #2 (Swamp Soup...yum). While we spent a lot of time in the screened in pool at the house, we also made it out to the beach:




It was a nice relaxing weekend, minus a few small sunburn spots!

MrsDrPoe: The Lost Parables (Luke 15)

It's another Theology Thursday on the blog, so I invite you to open up your Bibles with me as we delve into God's word. Today we'll be looking at the "lost chapter" in Luke, Chapter 15. I studied this chapter earlier in the week with our friend Mr. Holley, and most of these ideas presented here came from that study.

The chapter opens with the Parisees and scribes complaining that Jesus was again receiving and eating with tax collectors and sinners. And Jesus responds to their complaints with three parables:

The Lost Sheep
Jesus points out than any man who lost one out of one hundred sheep would leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness in order to seek after the one that was lost. Upon finding it, any man would call together his friends and neighbors to celebrate its return to the fold. Jesus compares this scenario to the fact that there is "more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who have need no repentance."

The Lost Coin
Jesus says that any woman who loses one of ten silver coins would light lamps and sweep her house, carefully searching until she finds it. And when she does find it, she gathers her friends and neighbors together to rejoice with her. Jesus again compares this to the "joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

These stories show us that God cares about every individual, not percentages. Like the "any man" and "any woman" in these parables, we should realize that there's too much at stake to give up on those who are lost; we should continually be searching for opportunities to teach the gospel of Christ. One other thing we can see is the heavenly view of repentance- it is an occasion for massive amounts of rejoicing in the Lord.

The Lost Son
A certain man had two sons, the youngest of which demanded his inheritance early. When he had received it, this son took all his possessions with him to a far country and literally wasted everything that he had. After a famine in the country, the son winds up feeding pigs for a citizen of the country. Coming to the realization that he would gladly eat the pods he was feeding the pigs, the son decided that he would go home, repent of the sin he committed against God and his father, and ask to be one of his father's slaves.

When he was a long way off, his father saw him and ran to him, commanding his servants to bring his son clothes and to kill the fatted calf. While the celebration continued, the older son came back from the fields and refused to enter the party. The father pleaded with him, but the son refused saying that he was responsible and worked hard for his father all the time but never received even the smallest of festivities in his honor. The father responds that all he had belonged to the oldest son, but it was right to celebrate at the younger son's return for he "was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found."

There are so many lessons that this parable by itself could teach us. First, it's important to note that when the younger son wanted to leave, the father didn't try to get him to stay by changing the rules. (Example: the son wanted to spend money on harlots; the dad didn't say, "if you stay, you can bring one over occasionally.") This has application to us as children of God, as well as to those of us who are parents.

Another thought this story brings to light is the fact that if we take one step toward God, He will run to us, just like the father ran to the son when he was still a long way off. When we make the decision to turn our lives toward Him and to repent of the sins we've committed, He rushes to us, and helps us take up our cross daily (Luke 9:23).

Finally, while we must be careful not to be the younger son, we must also strive not to be like the older son. When one repents and returns to the church, we should embrace him/her and rejoice that he/she has been made alive again. Often times it's too easy for us to have a cynical ("he/she will just go back to his/her old ways soon enough.") or proud ("he/she doesn't deserve this; I've been more faithful than him/her!") attitude toward one who repents. These are the same attitudes that the Pharisees and scribes had toward the sinners and tax collectors at the beginning of the chapter- attitudes that we as Christians, saved by the grace of God, should not possess!

The parable of the lost son is left open-ended. I think that this is in part due to the fact that the Pharisees and scribes were left to choose whether or not they would continue in their holier-than-thou attitudes. If we struggle with this idea that heaven rejoices more over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine who don't need repentance, then we too are left with a choice- love our returned brethren and rejoice with the heavenly host or harbor our resentment, allowing the devil a firm foothold in our lives.

MrsDrPoe: Whole Wheat Bread

Today's What's for Dinner Wednesday is another treat to eat with your meal- whole wheat bread made from scratch from start to finish (just call me the little red hen). This recipe is essentially from my VitaMix cookbook, with a few minor adjustments. If you don't have one of these mixers-on-steroids, you can start with whole wheat flour and mix/kneed the dough by hand.


Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups warm water (not pictured), 1 package active dry yeast, 1 tablespoons honey, 1 3/4 cups whole kernel wheat, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon lemon juice.

Place the whole wheat kernels in the dry container, securing the lid. Turn the machine on VARIABLE speed 1. Quickly increase the speed to 10 and then to high. Grind wheat for 1 minute, and then let it cool for a few minutes.


Combine yeast, honey, and the water in a bowl to proof for approximately 5 minutes.


Pour oil, lemon juice, and yeast mixture into the wheat flour in the blender container. To mix the dough, turn the machine on HIGH for 1 second. While the dough rests, grease a loaf pan. To kneed the dough in the machine, two steps are required; repeat the two-step process 5 times.

Step 1: Scrape the sides of the container with a non-stick spatula, pulling the dough at the sides to the center of the container.

Step 2: With the speed set to HIGH, turn the machine on and off quickly, 5 times.

Dump the dough into the loaf pan, scraping the container with the spatula if necessary. Shape the loaf with the spatula:


Let the dough rise about 30 minutes until it reaches the top of the loaf pan.


Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

Each loaf makes 12 slices, and each slice has: 99 calories, 0 grams of fat, 4 grams of fiber, 2 milligrams of sodium, 0 grams of sugar, and 22 grams of Carbs...obviously not low-carb but pretty healthy (bread-wise) and no preservatives. Enjoy!



**Edit 8/11/11: The above nutrition information is for a slice of bread made without oil, honey, salt, and lemon juice which are considered optional ingredients in the original recipe. Thanks to Anonymous for prompting a second look!

MrsDrPoe: The Blessing

For the next reading review, I present to you "The Blessing: Giving the Gift of Unconditional Love and Acceptance" by Dr. John Trent and Gary Smalley:


I received a free copy of this book from the BookSneeze website. In this work, a method for blessing our children is investigated based on examination of Old Testament blessings given from fathers to their children. The five main 'parts' to a blessing are developed from these passages. The authors also delve into general guidelines and examples for blessing, as well as suggestions for how to pass on the blessing if we have never experienced it ourselves.

I enjoyed this book. It was a fairly easy read, and it presented psychological thoughts of a Biblical nature that should be considered when raising children. Although I don't plan on being a parent any time soon, I think the ideas conveyed by the authors will be helpful to me when we do start adding to our family.

I found the subtitle of the book to be a little misleading; in the text, Dr. Trent does acknowledge the need in certain instances for discipline as outlined in the Bible. In these cases, sinful acts of children should not be "unconditionally accepted." This and most of the ideas presented in the book align with my understanding of the scriptures; however, some do not. As always, I caution readers to examine any study of this nature with an open Bible, because nothing should replace the word of God.

MrsDrPoe: Conservation of Momentum, Part II

It's that time again folks! For this Thesis Tuesday, we will continue our discussion on the conservation of momentum equation by looking at a brief example.

Consider water flowing through a 20 deg bend shown below at a rate of 0.025 m3/s. The flow is frictionless, gravitational effects are negligible, and the pressure at section 1 is 150 kPa and section 2 is 74.5 kPa. Determine the x and y components of force required to hold the bend in place.


Alright...let's organize the problem from the given information in the statement, the original figure (not shown), and a fluid property table:

Given: theta = 20 deg, Q1 = 0.025 m3/s, P1 = 150 kPa, P2 = 74.5 kPa, rho = 999 kg/m3, D1 = 0.1 m, D2 = 0.05 m
Find: Fx, Fy
Assume: steady, laminar, incompressible, uniform flow, frictionless, neglect gravity

Now onto the solution (employing the process we outlined last week):

Step 1: We must first choose a CV, keeping in mind the criteria for the "best" CV. In the figure above, the CV we will use is represented by the dashed line- note that it is perpendicular to flow into and out of the bend and that it cuts through the bend support.

Step 2: Next, we must apply the continuity equation:

d/dt(int(rho)dV) + int(rho*(V.n))dA = 0

For steady (d/dt(...) = 0), incompressible (rho = constant), uniform (V = constant) flow with 2 in/out surfaces:

rho*int(V1.n1)dA1 + rho*int(V2.n2)dA2 = rho*|V2|*A2 - rho*|V1|*A1 = 0

Since we know the volumetric flowrate (Q1) and bend diameter at 1, we can find the velocity at 1:

|V1|= Q1/(0.25*pi*D1*D1)

Similarly, since we know the diameters at 1 and 2, we can determine the areas:

A1 = 0.25*pi*D1*D1 (etc.)

Thus, we can solve for the velocity at surface 2:

|V2|= |V1|*D1*D1/(D2*D2) = 12.732 m/s

Step 3: Then we look at the external forces acting on the bend. In this case, we have two pressure forces and the support force of the bend (which we would not "see" if our CV did not intersect the support apparatus):

Fp1 = (p1*A1 0 0)
Fp2 = (Fp2x Fp2y 0) = (-p2*cos(theta)*A2 p2*sin(theta)*A2 0)
Fs = (Fsx Fsy Fsz)

Step 4: Next, we must look at the left side of the linear momentum equation for steady, uniform, incompressible flow with 2 surfaces:

d/dt(int(rho*V)dV + int(rho*V*(V.n))dA

rho*int(V1*(V1.n1))dA1 + rho*int(V2*(V2.n2))dA2

-rho*int(V1*|V1|)dA1 + rho*int(V2*|V2|)dA2

-rho*V1*|V1|*A1 + rho*V2*|V2|*A2

Step 5: Finally, we combine the right and left sides of the momentum equation, splitting it into scalar components (remember: this equation is a vector equation!), and solve for the unknown support forces:

Vector Eqn:

-rho*V1*|V1|*A1 + rho*V2*|V2|*A2 = Fs + Fp1 + Fp2

X-Momentum:

-rho*|V1|*|V1|*A1 + rho*|V2|*|V2|*cos(theta)*A2 = Fsx + rho*A1 -p2*cos(theta)*A2

Fsx = -821.322 N

Y-Momentum:

-rho*|V2|*|V2|*sin(theta)*A2 = Fsy + p2*sin(theta)*A2

Fsy = -158.79 N

Z-Momentum:

0 = Fsz

While it may seem a bit complicated at first, I can assure you that the more problems you work with this outlined process, the easier it becomes. Please be sure to comment with any questions you may have, and stay tuned for more momentum madness next week!

MrsDrPoe: Prospective Deals, 8/9

Good afternoon and happy Money Monday to all! There are a few good deals this week that I thought I'd share with you, but I haven't gone myself yet, so I don't have any pictures.


CVS
$1 ECB back WYB 2 bottles of Herbal Essences or Aussie shampoo or conditioner at $2.48/bottle [$1/1 RP 8/07, FREE bottle (Facebook offer, expired)]

Wags
$8 back in RR WYB $20 in Dr. Scholl's products (coupons here, there, and everywhere)
$1 back in RR WYB 1 bottle Herbal Essences or Aussie shampoo or conditioner at $3.00 [$1/1 RP 8/07, FREE bottle (Facebook offer, expired)]

Kroger
Mangoes - $1 (It's the perfect time to try these)
Sweet corn ears - $0.33 (And for a fantastic side dish, these)
Red seedless grapes - $1.68/lb
Tyson boneless, skinless breasts - $1.79/lb


Be sure to check here for all the deals and coupon matchups this week, and happy saving!

MrsDrPoe: The Land of the Samurai

Happy Foto Friday to all! Today I'd like to share with you some pictures from my recent trip to Japan for the first ASME-JSME-KSME Joint Fluids Engineering Conference. After 15+ hours of flight time (from ATL to SFO to TYO) we arrived at the Tokyo-Narita airport at 4:40 pm local time, but the conference was in Hamamatsu, which meant we had 2.5+ hours of train rides before we reached our final destination. The trains themselves were pretty cool:


As were the views from them (rice patties and Tokyo):


Hamamatsu Station was almost adjacent to our hotel, which was fantastic because by the time we got there, it was 9:30 pm local time, and we were exhausted. After checking into my room at the Okura Act City Hotel, I immediately showered and settled in for Sunday morning services. Right after the closing prayer (which happily coincided with my goal of staying up till midnight local time to help my body get acclimated to the current time zone), I tumbled into my small, hard bed that was surprisingly comfortable.

The next morning I felt fantastic (or at least a lot better than I did when I got to my room the night before). After Sunday evening services and daily Bible reading, I checked out the view of the city, mountains, and the Pacific) from my room:


While Japan is totally clean (I saw maybe two pieces of trash on the street the whole time I was there), downtown Hamamatsu is definitely prettier at night. Another thing I noticed my first day there was the bathrooms. The toilets were either porcelain holes in the ground (not the first thing you want to see when you get off a plane you've been in for 10+ hours) or highly technical machines with bidet buttons:


The shower had three knobs- one to turn on the bath faucet, one to turn on the shower head, and one to select the temperature (no guessing at the perfect temp there). And the mirror had an area above the sink that wouldn't fog when you took a shower (love it).

After meeting my advisor for breakfast, I went across the street to the hotel conference center where all the presentations were being given:


Every day from about 8:30-6:00 someone was lecturing about something- I heard about A LOT of different research projects going on...so much in fact that I realized how much I miss going to class. One of the most interesting presentations was about the vortices formed by the flapping of butterfly wings. My presentation went alright; although, I wish I would've done a better job answering the few questions that were asked about my work.

Lunches were provided for us each day as well:


We received green tea in a juice-box and a box with 6-9 compartments containing various Japanese delicacies. Each lunch box came with a guide to what was in each compartment; some of the descriptions on this guide were quite interesting, for example:

"food boiled and seasoned"

"boiled rice with assorted ingredients"

"Shizuoka Oden - Japanese dish containing all kinds of ingredients cooked in a special broth of soy sauce, sugar, sake, etc."

Tuesday night I spent going to a Technical Committee meeting and working on my presentation (which I gave Wednesday at noon). Wednesday night there was a banquet for all the conference participants- it was opened with the smashing of a Sake barrel by the leaders of each society, closed with a Japanese word and a clap from the crowd, and filled in between with Japanese culture. There were Japanese style dishes (both sweet and savory), green tea, and music on Japanese harps from a group called the Harp Queens:


Since the purpose for my trip was the conference, I didn't get to do much sightseeing; however, Monday and Thursday nights I did get out of the hotel complex for a bit. The first night out it was me and a map (with the locations all in Japanese). I struck out to find Hamamatsu Castle, but I didn't make it there before dark (at about 7:00 pm). Since the castle was in a less populated area of town, I decided to go back to the hotel (Japan has a low crime rate, but I didn't want to take my chances). On the way back, I got lost for about 20 minutes before finding a sign that said "Hamamatsu Station"...then I followed the train station signs home.

Thursday night was less adventurous; my advisor and I went to try and get souvenirs for our families. While wandering around the city, we ran into another conference attendee with his Japanese "sister" (who had been an exchange student in his home when he was younger). We went to a Japanese BBQ place with them, where the sister ordered various items (from a Japanese Mr. Robinson) that were brought to our table along with what was essentially a mini charcoal grill. The food was wonderful- especially the beef- and I can now say that I have tried cow tongue. Here some random pictures from my wanderings:


And that was my trip to the land of the Samurai in a nutshell. It was a great experience that I was so thankful to have had, and if I can ever go back, I will (but I am definitely taking Mr. Poe with me next time)!

MrsDrPoe: Biblical Definitions

It's another Theology Thursday, folks! Please open up your Bibles with me as we look at a few passages from God's word. Today's topic stems from one of the things that our friend, Ms. Long, loves about language- the fact that it's a living organism, constantly growing and changing. Because of this, there are several Bible words in the current vernacular that may bring different ideas to mind than the ideas the Biblical contexts present. We'll look at two for now: profane and visit.


PROFANE
1) not connected with religion or religion matters; secular 2) not initiated into the inner mysteries or esoteric knowledge of something 3) not hallowed or consecrated 4) showing disrespect or contempt for sacred things; irreverent*

bebelos - permitted to be trodden, accessible (related to koinos - common)**

Typically when we think of the word profane, we think of the related word profanity, which then leads to the thought of trash or filth. Even the phrasing of the dictionary definition above brings to mind that to profane something means to drag it through the mud. But examining the Biblical definition, we see profaning something doesn't just mean heaping trash on it, but also simply making it accessible or common.

So if we consider what it means to "profane the name of [our] God" (Lev 18:21, etc.), we need to realize that it doesn't just mean pairing "God" with curse words. Any time we use His name other than when we are consciously speaking of Him or to Him, we are profaning His name by making it common. We need to be mindful of flippantly using phrases such as "Oh, Lord" and "Oh my God," realizing that there is a context in which these phrases should be used and a context in which they should not. We must take great care to not make common anything that is holy.

VISIT
1) to go or come to see out of friendship or for social reasons 2) to stay with as a guest for a time 3) to go or come to see in a professional or business capacity 4) to go or come to in order to inspect or investigate 5) to go or come to for a time so as to make use of , look at, etc. 6) to occur or come to 7) to bring suffering, trouble, etc. 8) to inflict (punishment, etc.) upon someone; to afflict (with punishment, etc.); to avenge*

episkeptomai - to inspect (a late form of episkopeo - to look upon, care for, exercise oversight)**

When I say something like: "I'm going to go visit ___," I am usually employing one of the first six dictionary definitions of the word, meaning I'm visiting someone for social or business reasons. But these definitions don't encompass the full Biblical meaning of the word. Take Ruth 1:6 for example: "Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the LORD had visited His people by giving them bread." Prior to this visit by God, there was a famine in the land of Israel (Ruth 1:1), and this verse tells us that God visited the children of Israel by giving them bread. Here we can see the Biblical definition of "visit"- to supply a need.

So when we are told in Jas 1:27, "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world," we know this doesn't necessarily mean stop by and say hi (although social interaction is important and can be a valid need- especially for shut-ins). To truly visit orphans and widows in their trouble, we must help supply their needs in whatever area their lives are lacking; this is pleasing to God (Matt 25:36-46).

Another verse that talks about visiting is Ex 32:34, "...Nevertheless, in the day when I visit for punishment, I will visit punishment upon them for their sin." In this verse we see God planning to visit to supply another need- the need for justice and punishment for sin. We should remind ourselves daily of this need and strive daily to remove sin from our lives, seeking the grace of God when we stumble. Ironically, in a world full of sin, visiting to supply the specific need of punishment has remained a valid dictionary definition for the word "visit."


I hope these thoughts have been helpful to you, and until next time...happy studying!

*From Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition
**From Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words

MrsDrPoe: Corn Fritters

Today's What's for Dinner post could actually be an appetizer or side dish: Grandmama Wolgemuth's corn fritters. When I visited the great state of PA a few weeks ago, my uncle mentioned these in passing, and I knew I needed to get the recipe because 1) everything my grandmother makes is superb and 2) Papa Poe loved the corn fritters we ate in Gatlinburg last year. So without further ado...


Ingredients: 2 large ears of corn (as dry as possible), 1 egg, 0-4 tablespoons of flour, and oil for frying (not pictured).


Remove the corn from the cob by grating each ear; you should have approximately one cup of corn when you finish.


Beat the egg in a small bowl, and add the corn. If the corn wasn't very dry, add a few teaspoons of batter to stiffen the mixture slightly; the drier the corn, the less flour that you need to add. Drop by spoonfuls into hot oil.


After a minute or so, flip the fritters. After the fritters are cooked through and golden brown, remove them from the oil and let them drain on a papertowel. Serve with ketchup or maple syrup (Papa Wolgemuth's and my favorite fritter-dip).


Notes: This recipe (which makes about 10 half-dollar sized fritters) is not exact; try to stick to the 1 egg to 1 cup corn ratio and to add as little flour as possible when trying to obtain the thicker consistency that holds together when dropped into the oil. To dry my corn, I leave shucked ears in the refrigerator (uncovered) for several days. In the future I'd like to try this recipe with other produce (apples, etc.); I'll be sure to post my results!