Author Archives: Ellen

Oxford Archives ~ Doors and Fences

‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.’

This is a post from my archives from 2014.

Oxford Day 6 040Our tour guide in Oxford, July of 2014, said that there are stories about this door being an inspiration to C.S. Lewis on the writing of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as he was housed behind this door from time to time.

Oxford Day 6 039

Oxford Day 6 041and just to the right of this doorway was this…

Oxford Day 6 042…the lamp post that served as the model in the story.

Good story if it’s true and you can see the inspirations are there. The Chronicles of Narnia are a favorite of mine.

There is so much great history to hear about and see in Oxford. We are already talking about spending at least a couple days in this city the next time we visit Jolly Old England. 

Back to the present. Not just a couple more days but our apartment is booked for 9 days!

Oxford Day 6 113

This fence with “Head” posts is in Oxford England close to the Bodlein and and next to the Sheldonian Theater and Old Ashmolean. Each post has a different head.

Oxford Day 6 080

Last night while Dear and I watched an episode of Inspector Morse they drove on the street next to this fence. I enjoy seeing places we have walked when we watch shows like Morse, Inspector Lewis, or Lord Peter Whimsy series from Dorothy Sayers mysteries.

Oxford Day 6 080

Oxford Day 6 079I didn’t have a lot of time to research why there are heads on each of these posts and information about them isn’t an easy click away.

During our 2022 visit to Oxford we do intend to take in the Sheldonian and a few museums, too. I found this Youtube description and some history of the Sheldonian.

This is my last archive post of Oxford. The days are ticking down for our trip in September.

Summer is Waning…

Happy to see these end of summer photos.

It’s been a couple days since these photos were taken and our blue skies have been obscured by smoke. A few fires have erupted in our county and neighboring counties that have affected the air quality. Local restaurants are feeding the fire fighters and there is an Incident Command Center at the junior high parking lot next to our church.


There is expected to be record heat Friday along with dry and unstable conditions which could increase the potential for extreme fire behavior Friday through Saturday. Due to the local fires we have cropping up along with neighboring fires there can also be an expected deterioration of air quality with an increased level of smoke in the air.w🔥☀️🔥
So an early morning walk and watering are in order and then work inside where we will stay cool.
No big plans for Labor Day Weekend for us, how about for you? One last hoorah?

Truth for Today #33

Thursday September 1st

On Thursdays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s dig deep in God’s Truth this year!

Ezekiel 36:26-27

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules (just decrees).

From Vera:

‭‭Lamentations‬ ‭3:19-26‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”

From Leonard:

Luke 9:23

Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”

From Caramel:

Psalm 46:9

“He is bringing an end to wars throughout the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
He burns the military wagons with fire.”
‭‭

Adios August Hodgepodge

Time for the last August Wednesday Hodgepodge! Thank you Jo From This Side of the Pond for asking the questions!

1. Something you’ve labored over recently? 

Pulling weeds, weeds and more weeds, to the point of my right arm/elbow screaming at me to stop it!

2. How will you rest on Labor Day? 

We rarely rest on Labor Day for many different reasons. We have been listening to and reading some great talks and articles on having a Lord’s Day Rest. We want to be more intentional on leaving Sundays for rest from our labors and being more in tune with keeping our ‘lamp tended and storing good oil for our lamps’. We also don’t want to ignore the importance of spending time each day with God through His Word, the Bible.

3. Margaret Mead is quoted as saying, “I learned the value of hard work by working hard.” Would you agree? Where and how did you learn the value of hard work? 

It is good for man to work. I have learned the value of hard work by working hard and by the example of my parents and others who worked hard and work hard. My Dear is a great example of someone who works hard to a good end not just spinning his wheels.

4. It’s National Eat Outside Day (August 31st). Will you? Do you enjoy dining ‘al fresco’ or prefer indoor seating? 

I prefer eating inside and if I have to eat outside I need a shady spot. I developed, in my late 50’s, a skin sensitivity to the sun shining directly on me, especially my thighs. When the sun hits them it immediately feels like they are burning. This happens through my clothing. When living in Southern California from 2006-2010, I had to put sunshades on the passenger window so the sun wouldn’t hit my thighs. Weird…

5. Somehow it’s the end of August. What was the best day of the month for you and tell us what made it so? 

We had a great day last Friday when our Colville family could have dinner together and the grands and I had some water gun and hose fun outside, getting a wee bit soaked. There were emergency surgeries and other issues over the course of the month that kept us from getting together for a meal. Then on Saturday I met up with our DIL and Grands to watch our small town parade. FUN. The collage at the top of the post is from our parade time.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Northeast Washington Fair Parade

This past weekend our town hosted the Northeast Washington Fair. Part of the festivities includes a parade on Saturday morning.

Waiting patiently for the parade to start.

The sirens from the fire engines announced the beginning of the parade. It was loud as you can tell from our Grands covering their ears.

JJ still managed to wave to the firemen while he kept one ear covered.

Things quieted down. Most of the participants in the parade throw candy to the kids watching along the parade route. That’s what the blue bag is for and they got a haul!

JJ stuffed his pockets full of candies.

A country necessity.

Those pockets are getting full.

When the parade was over we walked over to the Farmer’s market for a few veggies and the kids got their free honey stick.

A picture with the Colville Bear on the way back to the parking lot was our grand finale. Later on this day the Grands went to the fair with their mom and granny. There were lots of farm animals to see and an ice cream cone to enjoy!

We’ve had a cool down with the weather for a few days. The weather was perfect for the parade.

They Turned on Me!

The kids and grands were over for dinner last Friday night and after dinner the grands wanted to play with the water guns in the back yard. Soon the water guns were left behind for the hoses that offered more fun and power!

It was all good for a time and then they both decided to turn on me!

Little stinkers! We came inside to get dry clothes on and it was time for them to head home for bed.

I got dry clothes on and put my feet up for a little relaxation before going to bed.

I cherish these moments and am happy to have the opportunity to spend time with these two little humans!

On Saturday we met up on Main Street in Colville for the Fair Parade. I’ll share photos from the parade tomorrow.

The Ninety and Nine ~ Hymn

The Ninety and Nine

There were ninety and nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold.
But one was out on the hills away,
Far off from the gates of gold.
Away on the mountains wild and bare.
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.

Lord, Thou hast here Thy ninety and nine;
Are they not enough for Thee?
But the Shepherd made answer: This of Mine
Has wandered away from Me;
And although the road be rough and steep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep.

But none of the ransomed ever knew
How deep were the waters crossed;
Nor how dark was the night
The Lord passed through
Ere He found His sheep that was lost.
Out in the desert He heard its cry,
Sick and helpless and ready to die;
Sick and helpless and ready to die.

Lord, whence are those blood drops all the way
That mark out the mountain’s track
They were shed for one who had gone astray
Ere the Shepherd could bring him back.
Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn?
They are pierced tonight by many a thorn;
They are pierced tonight by many a thorn.

And all through the mountains, thunder riven
And up from the rocky steep,
There arose a glad cry to the gate of Heaven,
Rejoice! I have found My sheep!
And the angels echoed around the throne,
Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!
Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!

Words: Elizabeth C. Clephane, 1868.

Oxford Archives ~ The Bear

Oxford Day 6 184Dating from 1242 The Bear is the oldest Pub in Oxford. It was fun to see it featured in the latest season of “The Amazing Race”. There is another pub in Oxford that also claims to be the oldest. I’ll let them duke it out.

2014-07-09 Oxford Day 62Oxford Day 6 181

The Bear is home to a rather impressive yet random collection of neckties. Visitors from around the globe have contributed to the collection. They are displayed in a room off the main entrance and you can see that the display continues onto the ceiling.

I was stumped to come up with an offering for the letter N until I remembered this pub that we stopped into after a long day of walking and sight seeing in Oxford in July of 2014. It has very low ceilings and a very narrow steep staircase to the toilets. I can’t imagine someone having a few too many going up and worse coming down those steep steps.

Back to the present: This time around we probably won’t visit The Bear. There are plenty of noteworthy pubs we’ll visit instead, especially the ones that Morse and Inspector Lewis visited during their Murder Mysteries series.

Truth for Today #32

Thursday August 25th

On Thursdays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s dig deep in God’s Truth this year!

2 Corinthians 2:14-17 (ESV)

But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

From Leonard:

Luke 4: 17-21
Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

From Vera:

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭2:20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

From Karen:

Lamentations 3:24
The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.