I am trying an experiment. I have a recipe for an apricot nectar cake that my friend Milly gave me over 20 years ago. It is delicious! I got to thinking that if apricot nectar makes a wonderful cake then why would mango not make an equally delicious cake. The only problem is that the apricot nectar cake starts with a boxed lemon cake mix. No lemon cake mix in our tiny part of the world. I also have Milly’s receipt for a fresh apple cake that is made from scratch so I decided to modify the fresh apple cake and turn it into a mango cake. The cake is out of the oven and it looks great; I made a glaze to put on the hot cake; the glazes are supposed to be made with powdered sugar; once again no powder sugar so I put regular granulated sugar in the blender and made a fine powder out of it which I mixed with mango and lime juice. I will let you know how the experiment turns out.
We spent almost all day working in the apartment getting it ready for our kids’ visit. Steve fixed some of the screens. Amama came today to pay back her day off so she mopped the floors after we moved the beds from one room to the other. We got all the curtains hung except those in the bathrooms. There was no curtain in the bathroom so I made one; I think that our daughter-in-law Lindsay will appreciate having a curtain in the bathroom! Aren’t I a good mother-in-law! Ha!
Papa Zachariah did not find out if he was going to be the next Balogu chief because the Ya-Naa (the chief of all the Dagombas and the one who will choose the next Balogu chief) could not come out of his palace yesterday. He could not come out because it was Yendi’s big market day and it was a Friday. According to tradition the Ya-Naa cannot come out and do any business on a market day that falls on Friday because many years ago there was a dispute in the big market on a Friday and a fight broke out. The Chief sent an elder to see what was going on and a message to tell them to stop. They killed the messenger so the Chief sent another man and he was killed also and then a third messenger was killed so it was decreed that no palace business would be done on big market days that fall on Friday. The appointment of the Balogu chief has been postponed until Sunday. Nazo said that there are a few other days that the Ya-Naa does not go out of the palace. He said that he cannot go out on the 5th,15th, or 25th of any month if that is the day of the new moon.
Red, our part driver, mechanic, handyman, and friend stopped by for a visit this morning. He came when we moved the beds in the apartment; he jumped right in and helped us get them moved quickly.
Thank you for the love, prayers and support.
In HIS Service,
Steve and Kandie
P.S. Our niece Audrey is getting better. For those of you that might not know she was well one day and then fell sick and was later diagnosed with Catatonia ; not able to do or say anything. She has started saying a few things and she is now using her hands to pick up things. She got moved to the new rehab hospital so we are in hopes that she will continue to make improvements. Thank you for the prayers and cards you have sent on her behalf.
