Newsletter & Calendar - January 2004

What Will 2004 Bring You?
It's hard to believe that we are actually on the brink of 2004. This young century has seen it's share of excitement. At the end of 1999 the world cautiously awaited its arrival, wondering if our technology could handle the change. It did. As 2000 closed, we waited anxiously to find out who would lead our country into the new century. We barely got that issue settled before our new President faced one of the greatest challenges in the history of our country, the attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. In the short years since then, we have seen conflict and success in Afghanistan and Iraq. But now, again, a new year is before us. Most of us will gladly close the book on 2003 and welcome the new opportunities of 2004, in the hope that it will bring peace to our country-or at least continued peace to our shores. The movie ìAnne of Green Gablesî contains a line that is relevant to this time of year. At one point, Anne says, ìEach day is fresh with no mistakes in it.î And so it is with new years. 2004 will arrive fresh, a clean slate, and we will all have the opportunity to decide what to do with it. We can live our lives allowing circumstances to dictate our direction or we can set goals for ourselves and work toward seeing them accomplished. There will always be obstacles, setbacks and diversions along the way, but the odds of reaching a set goal or destination improve dramatically when we have a plan. What will 2004 bring? No one knows. But whatever comes, if we determine to make the best of it, keeping our eyes focused on our goals, there's a good chance we'll see 2004 go our way!

Wagoner County Assessors Plan Annual Visit

On January 20th from 1:30 pm until 4:00 pm, representatives from the Assessors Office in Wagoner County will be on hand in the Johanna Woods Clubhouse to help anyone needing to register their home, file for Homestead Exemption, or just to answer tax related questions. Mark your calendar and come on down if you need their help! As always, we are pleased to be able to offer this convenience to our residents and hope it is of value to you.

Storm Shelter Construction Begins

Finally, all the building permits have been secured, all the construction details have been finalized, all the legal hoops have been cleared and work has begun on the Johanna Woods Storm Shelters! This will be a huge construction project and, weather permitting, will be completed before the next storm season rolls into Oklahoma. Look for more details in upcoming newsletters.

New Year's
Cook's Corner

Spinach Salad with Garlic, Olive Oil & Pine Nuts

• Ingredients
• About 12 cups fresh, cleaned spinach
• 2-3 garlic cloves
• 1/4 C olive oil or lemon flavored oil
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 Tablespoons toasted pine nuts

Directions:
Peel the garlic cloves and crush them with the broad side of a knife. Place the crushed cloves in the olive oil and set aside. Depending on how strong of a garlic flavor you want, this can be done up to a day ahead. Refrigerate the oil and garlic.
Wash the spinach and shake dry, leaving a little moisture on the leaves. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Toss the spinach in the hot oil until it is just wilted and thoroughly heated. Remove the spinach to a bowl and sprinkle with balsamic vinegar; toss to coat. Serve this topped with the toasted pine nuts. Serves 6

New Year's Day
Tradition's Corner

New Years is the oldest Holiday observance of them all. It was first celebrated in Babylon 4000 years ago! Believe it or not, they even made new year's resolutions way back then. In those days, most resolutions had to do with returning borrowed farming equipment. Times do change. In most parts of our country, typical New Year's meals include the these food items, eaten for the following reasons:

• Black-Eyed Peas-to bring luck in the new year.
• Greens- such as cabbage, mustard greens, collard greens, or spinach-to bring money in the new year.
• Cornbread-to bring wealth in the new year.
  Not a bad idea...even if it doesn't work you've had a pretty good meal to start the new year!
  

Big Election News!

With the change in the timing of Oklahoma's Presidential Primary, we in Oklahoma will be casting our vote in February for our preferred Presidential Candidates. That vote will take place on Tuesday, the 3rd of February, 2004! Wow! It's an election year and we will be jumping into the middle of things early. Mark you calendars now to turn out and exercise your right to vote!

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