Columns

It’s A Busy Spring!

The Spring season is in full swing, and boy does it feel good to be able to enjoy being outside and getting things accomplished. Everywhere you look, lawnmowers are running, flowers are being planted, hay is beginning to get cut, and school is almost out for the Summer!

We are staying busy here at the Extension Office also. If you didn’t already know, we began selling tomatoes a few weeks ago that come from our Red River Research Station greenhouses in Bossier City. This has been a huge hit for those DeSoto residents who like to snack on a nice red tomato or maybe enjoy a BLT sandwich for lunch. We typically get tomatoes in on Tuesday or Wednesday and for the past two weeks we have sold out the same day!

Remembering Tanya LaHood Dufour

Tanya! My neighbor (while in school and now), classmate (since kindergarten) and … friend (always). I was reacquainted with Tanya and her husband Donnie after I moved back home to Mansfield in 2007 and I call them good friends now. Sadly, Tanya passed away last week leaving a large loving family and many close friends. And, all of these packed into their little Catholic Church, St. Joseph’s, for her last rites. What a touching service with hardly a dry eye but Father Matthew Long brought a smile to everyone when he said that Tanya knew “the way … it was Her way!” I think I even heard a few chuckles from the family pews. He continued with many stories of her love, devotion and generosity. Everyone there agreed.

A Chimenia Visitor

Several interesting things happened in my backyard last week. I noticed that the birdseed in my feeder had been running out a lot faster than usual. Last year I noticed that a big crow had figured out a way to grasp the neck of the Shepard’s Hook that holds the feeder with one foot and to grasp the roof of the bird feeder with the other. In this way he could just hang on and shovel as much seed in as he wanted. It was something to behold.

77th Anniversary of VE Day - WWII

December 7, 1941 is the declared a “Day of Infamy” when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. The American navy fleet was at anchor there on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. On this Sunday morning at 7:55 am while many of the servicemen were at breakfast and some still in bed Japanese dive bombers bearing the symbol of the rising sun burst through the clouds. Within seconds the sky was full of their war planes dropping bombs on our ships. The bombers were followed by fighters called Zeros with their machine guns strafing the brave U.S. sailors who rushed to their guns. Senator Jackson B. Davis was stationed there and tells of the fighter planes flying so low you could see the smiles of the Japanese pilots. The attack left 2400 dead, 1200 wounded, 18 ships sunk and 300 American planes destroyed.

5 Ways to Help Dad Find His Stride

I always expected my husband to do more-more help around the house, playing more with the kids. I found myself looking to other fathers and wanting my husband to be more like them. I know now it was frustrating for him, and I know he was doing the best he could. My helpful criticism was not helpful at all.

One day I was venting to a friend and asked if she had the same problems with her husband. She paused, took a breath, and said to me, “Well, I think of all the things my husband does for me and our family. I think about all the pressures he has at work, trying to get everything done and be home at a decent hour. I think about his responsibilities at church. When I consider all those other responsibilities he has, I feel blessed that he does as much as he can at home.” Wow, that brought me down a peg or three!

Crazy Easy Carnitas

When I read Natalya Drozhzhin’s recipe in her blog “Momsdish” I wasn’t sure if I knew what a Carnita was. Street tacos vaguely resonated so I read on, now hooked. Mexican Carnitas (literally “little meats”) are marinated slow cooked pulled pork shoulder similar to but not as spicy as beef Barbacoas. Both go as fillers in the soft flour tortillas or for burritos. Natalya’s recipe uses a slow cooker versus others using Dutch ovens and BBQ pits. With rain predicted all weekend I opted for her slow cooker and am glad I did because I also got to know Natalya.

She wants us to trim and heavy season a 4 lb. pork shoulder roast. I used a Tony Chachere type rub (actually my Uncle Bert’s own “Reech’s Recipe”!) with some extra black pepper. Coarsely chop a large yellow onion, de-seed and slice horizontally two Anaheim (I used one jalapeno but it wasn’t hot enough) peppers, thinly slice two navel oranges, and crush and peel six garlic cloves.

As Paul Harvey used to say in his syndicated radio program, “AND now you know the rest of the story!” Most readers of this article know the details of the Battle of Mansfield when Gen. Taylor’s Confederate Army soundly defeated Gen. Banks’ larger Union Army on April 8, 1865. Taylor suffered less than 1000 casualties whereas Banks lost 2200 men. His hasty retreat allowed Taylor to capture 20 cannon, 200 wagons full of supplies and hundreds of rifles. General Kirby Smith, the general over all of the Trans-Mississippi region, was in Shreveport, La. He told Taylor to not engage the Union forces in Mansfield but wait until just south of Shreveport which was the capital of Louisiana at that time. “Too late, Sir”, replied Taylor, “The battle is over and the Yankees are on the run”!

A tribute to the family of Mr. Riemer Calhoun, Sr. is long overdue for the presentation of the Mansfield Female College buildings and property to the State of Louisiana as a museum to be enjoyed down through the years. The Mansfield Female College, oldest female college west of the Mississippi River and the “Jewell of DeSoto Parish”, was presented to Secretary of State Fox McKeithen from the front steps of the Museum’s main building in 2002. A large crowd of Mansfield and DeSoto Parish citizens were present and recognized the tremendous donation and its future value to the area. The Calhouns had developed the former three story Administration Building which was now a single story into one of the most gracious homes in the parish.

Check In Instead of Checking Out-or Checking Off

I think this may be a touchy subject but I’m going to say it anyway. God wants us to spend time with Him together as a family, and also individually. He would like us to spend as much time with Him as possible. Whew! That’s a lot of schedule juggling! Is it really that important? I feel like I’m doing good to get a prayer in, and even a daily Bible study. But isn’t that how life is, constantly expecting more out of us at every turn? Have I made you feel totally guilty now? I promisethat was not my intent. Let’s begin again.

Now that just sounds good doesn’t it? Well, I thought so too when I read Adam Hickman’s recipe on the My Recipes website. A little research told me that the French version that we all know that uses chicken is actually based on an older version from Russia that called for veal. Cordon Bleu simply means “Blue Ribbon” in French and I guess stands for First Place?

Mr. Hickman’s recipe calls for you to make a white sauce to start and to chop up the chicken and ham but I changed those two things. I just knew I would screw up the sauce to start with and I didn’t think I’d like a big mushy casserole. But if you do and aren’t sauce-challenged like I am then try things Adam’s way.

I preheated my oven to 400 and microwaved 3 oz. of cream cheese and 3 of sour cream until soft and stir in with 2 cups of half and half, add 1 tbl. of Dijon Mustard, 2 tsp. of chopped thyme, salt and pepper to taste and simmer all until hot.