Proud to be an American

It's Inauguration Day for us. Today we get our new president. And whether we voted for him or not, he's going to be OUR president. I didn't vote for him, didn't like him, didn't want him to win, couldn't even stand to hear him speak. But I will support him. I will respect him. And most of all, I WILL PRAY FOR HIM. He's coming into a tough situation. I'm sure that our country has been through worse economic times, but I can say that in my memory, I don't remember people losing their jobs at the rate they are now. I will admit that I am afraid. People that I love have lost their job. People that I love, that I've never even met, have lost their job. I'm working my butt off and not getting paid because attorneys are keeping their money. Have they never heard of the Golden Rule, "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You"? Another thing that concerns me is that if our president takes his focus off those in the world that hate us to deal with all of our economic problems, will they use that as a good time to attack us again? Pray for our new President. One thing I didn't learn during the election was if he's a good multi-tasker or not. I sure hope so. I will watch at high noon when he takes the oath of office. And I will watch some of the inaugural balls tonight to see what Michelle is wearing. Shame on me.

Now, on with the day. Work? Not work? What to do? I know it's only January 20th, but I really want to put my Valentine decorations out. I don't have much, but they brighten the house up so much. All that pink and red is so cheerful. And who doesn't like to think about love? The only problem is that I'd have to go in the basement. Shudder. You risk life and limb to go down there. It's such a mess.

I haven't started my workout program yet. I think I'm gonna get the stuff out of the car because it has DVDs with each item and maybe I can go at it by myself till Nan and I can get together.

What's for supper tonight?

Creamy Potato Soup.

4 slices bacon

3 large potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 cup chopped celery

water to cover

2 cups milk

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons paprika

In large saucepan cook bacon until crisp. Set bacon aside, along with 3 tablespoons of bacon drippings.

Add potatoes, onion, carrot and celery to drippings. Add enough water to cover vegetables and cook over low heat until tender, stirring occasionally.

Stir in milk, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

In a separate bowl, stir together sour cream, flour and paprika. Gradually stir 1 cup of hot soup mixture into sour crream mixture.

Pour sour cream mixture into soup mixture. Cook until good and bubbly hot. Top with chopped bacon pieces and shredded cheese.

I think that you could make this somewhat lower fat by using turkey bacon, 2 percent or even skim milk, fat-free sour cream, and low-fat cheese. Simply Potatoes makes great diced potatoes if you don't like to cut potatoes, which I don't, and they're not too pricey either.

BTW, my roast beef sandwiches that I made last week were out of this world YUMMY! We toasted the french bread just a little with a slice of swiss cheese on it, put the roast on them and dipped them in the aus jus. OMGoodness, so good! Hope you try it.