November 2019 – The Faith Cafe

Posted on November 28, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Turkey Hotline

Impending disaster! Photo by Matt Shalvatis on Flickr
CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

For over 30 years now, the Butterball company has hosted a hotline for those encountering problems or questions when cooking their Thanksgiving or Christmas turkeys.

The experts at their turkey talk-line answer calls from over 100,000 people per year, desperate cooks mystified by the process of roasting a turkey and needing advice. Usually, the caller is unsure how to thaw the turkey, or how to calculate the cooking time.

Sometimes, however, the problems are a bit more complicated…not to mention hilarious.

Posted on November 25, 2019November 25, 2019 by Lori Cartmell · 2 Comments

The Banana Paradox

Who doesn’t like banana cake? Even people who won’t eat bananas seem to like banana cake. It seems to be one of those desserts that is universally liked.

And what kind of bananas do you use to make a banana cake? Only the most uniformly yellow, firm, spot-free, perfect ones, right?

Wrong.

Posted on November 21, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Feline Prison Break

Photo by Mark Turnauckas on Flickr CC BY 2.0

Did you hear about the “prison break” at a Houston, Texas animal shelter recently?

A cunning criminal had been opening the heavy door of the senior cats’ enclosure for several nights in a row, setting the captives free to roam the shelter. Each morning, workers at the Friends for Life Animal Rescue would arrive to find the door mysteriously opened, and would have to wrangle the 15 cats back into their room.

The staff were stumped at who could be responsible for the feline jail break. It was only when they looked at footage from the building’s security cameras that they were able to crack the case.

The identity of the culprit came as a shock.

Posted on November 18, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Blessings of the Barren Season

Looking out the window here at The Faith Cafe, I notice that the deciduous trees in the park have dropped almost all of their leaves by now.

It’s always sad to have to say goodbye to the autumn leaves, isn’t it? When the last one has fallen, you’re left with a sense of loss, because you know you’re heading into the barren season of winter.

But a funny thing happens when a tree has lost its leaves: you can now see things that you didn’t know were there before.

Posted on November 15, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

When The Wall Came Down

“The Fall of the Berlin Wall–November 1989” by Gavin Stewart CC 2.0

Ever wonder if there’s a world out there beyond your imagination?

Citizens of the former East Germany got a partial answer to this question thirty years ago when the Berlin Wall began to be dismantled on November 9, 1989.

Those who had been trapped behind the wall for decades were suddenly able to travel to West Berlin and visit parts of Germany they hadn’t seen in almost a generation.

What they saw there astonished them.

Posted on November 12, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell · 3 Comments

Knit One, Purl One

There’s something rather magical about knitting, isn’t there?

Think about it: you start with something as simple as a ball of yarn and some knitting needles. Doesn’t seem very promising at first, does it?

But thanks to the skill and imagination of the knitter, you end up with a beautiful and intricately woven sweater, scarf or mittens, or booties for a baby. Or even a knit-covered bicycle. All made with great care and lots of love.

Did you know that God is a knitter, too?

Posted on November 10, 2019December 26, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Spot The Mistake

View from D-Day Landing Craft, June 6, 1944

On Remembrance Day in Canada (Veterans Day in the US), we remember the servicemen and -women who lost their lives to ensure the freedom we cherish so deeply today.

The numbers are staggering: it’s estimated that over 400,000 U.S. military personnel lost their lives during World War II. The US National D-Day Memorial Foundation estimates that over 4,000 Allied servicemen lost their lives on June 6, 1944 (D-Day) alone.

Posted on November 7, 2019November 25, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Feeding The Squirrels

I read a delightful fact about Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne. Apparently, he keeps nuts in his pockets to feed the red squirrels that live on his Balmoral estate. He so loves these little rodents that he even lets them into his house!

Prince Charles writes about the squirrels in the November 14, 2018 edition of “Country Life” magazine, which he guest-edited:

Posted on November 4, 2019November 22, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

Old Wooden Spoons

My old wooden spoon, with its newer, unused cousin

Do you have a favourite cooking utensil? One you keep returning to even though you may have a newer, better replacement for it?

I do. It’s an old wooden spoon that’s been used by my family for decades. In fact, it’s probably older than I am (I won’t tell you my exact age, but let’s just say that I remember Watergate. Enough said).

Posted on November 2, 2019November 22, 2019 by Lori Cartmell

It Was There All Along

If you look out the window here at The Faith Cafe, you can see the beautiful autumn leaves in the park next to us (remember, we’re a virtual cafe, so use your mind’s eye).

We’re fortunate in Toronto to live in a part of the world where the green leaves of summer change to spectacular colours of yellow, orange, red, purple and bronze during fall. If you ask many people here, they’ll say fall is their favourite season, and the gorgeous changing leaves play a big part in that.