Warm and pleasant greetings. We hope you are enjoying a good week and adjusting to Central Standard Time. It’s been a challenging week for us, but all things are well.
Forgot to mention that our daughter Leslie and grandson Ethan spent last weekend with us. They are doing well. Some of you mentioned seeing Leslie on YouTube with her church. She is one of the worship leaders at her church, The Unitarian Church of Baton Rouge. She gave the message for the Sunday morning services on Oct. 8. Thanks for watching. Warm greetings from Leslie to you all.
Week before, our community was busy with traffic in and out at Blue Cane-Little Hubbard Center, with voters coming and going. You’re a caring citizen when you cast your vote. Congratulations to all who succeeded in the race.
The next day, the road grader came along. Day after that, rain fell. When this happens, the roadway is left in terrible shape. This time, again, the road was coated with no-grade gravel and the vehicle tires were all stuck with inch-thick clay gunk.
Leaves falling like rain and landing everywhere lets you see the beauty in the process so it won’t become just a chore raking and bagging.
As the holidays approach, it’s time to be aware of scams and frauds. This is also the time for Medicare open enrollment season.
Recipients can make changes to their Medicare health and part D prescription drug plan between Oct. 15 and Dec. 7. Medicare scammers can look and sound official on TV, in emails, on the phone or in mail.
The Federal Trade Commission advises that individuals should never give personal information to one who contacts you out of the blue. Don’t respond to anyone who seems to be from Medicare and asks for your personal information.
Don’t answer the phone if you don’t recognize a caller’s number. Check your card for proper number and call them if you have concerns.
Cooks are talking turkey. Are you buying fresh or frozen? Actually, you don’t find too many markets offering fresh turkeys. The main benefit with fresh turkey is you don’t need to take the thawing time. You should only buy fresh turkey a day or two before you intend to cook it. Fresh turkey should be cooked within two days after purchase.
A frozen turkey should be kept frozen until ready to thaw. You can buy a frozen turkey up to a year in advance and freeze as it is. According to USDA, a frozen turkey can stay in the freezer indefinitely but should be cooked within a year for best quality.
A general rule of thawing is, for every 4 pounds of frozen turkey, it takes a day to thaw. So, if you have a 16-pound turkey, you’re looking at a four-day time period to thaw it in the refrigerator.
If quick-thawing in a container or kitchen sink, you should keep the water remaining at 40 degrees, which means that about every 30 minutes the water should be changed. It will take about 8 hours to quick-thaw a 15-pound turkey.
Turkey should be cooked immediately after it’s thawed. Be sure to cook to 165 degrees, which is the safe internal temperature.
Don’t forget the American Cancer Society’s Rally for a Cure annual bake sale is this Saturday, Nov. 18, just outside the NAPA store on Main Street in Charleston. Thanks for your support!
Best wishes to our school students bringing home good progress reports this week. Have a safe and enjoyable holiday break, everybody.
As we are entering Thanksgiving season, we take the time to say what we are most thankful for. I hope you will say it and say it aloud. I’m grateful for all the positive people in my life and what I may mean to others, which includes family, and you. Jesus is first.
How blessed we all are. May the spirit of thankfulness and giving become even deeper in our hearts so we can all enjoy a better home, a better community and a better nation.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
