Is that Jesus?

It was 7:45 in the morning and all I wanted was some Powerade and a biscuit surely my eyes were playing a trick on me but nope, it was Jesus.

Good for nothing friends

I tend to be the type of girl that says "Yes" too often.  This leads to me often being over-committed and well, late to almost everything, all the time.  Its how I roll those that love me accept it and move on those that want more a prompt arrival/departure lie to me about what time I should arrive somewhere, adjusting appropriately for the 30 minute bubble of my definition of "on time".

That being said, there are actually times when I like to do nothing, at all.  Not that tricky dance where nothing=a little something, just nothing. Sit, not talk or only talk as the spirit moves, stare at tv/space/wall whatever is near.  In the midst of the chaos in which I tend to exist, I've somehow managed to acquire girlfriends who will just let me sit.  It happens organically, I have this unplanned expanse of time and end up at their house and often while their family's life is happening around me. I guess that just kind of happens when the majority of your friends have been with you since the 90's. A combination of already knowing your story and no assuming that you're going anywhere anytime soon (even though you might talk about up an moving every 5 years or so) makes it all work out.  Whatever the factors, I dig that I have a bunch of good for nothing friends.

I don't get people

When I go to the store to pick up an item, I take my wallet with me  (the one with the money in it) because I know when I get to said store to pick up said item, they're expecting that I pay for that item.  This entire exchange makes sense to me. Until I get to the store and there is a box of the same item I came to purchase in the same aisle but not in the right spot, and its open, and kind of haphazardly tossed on top of other items on the shelf. 

I know, this is not a good sign. I pick up the box because I'm assuming the worse and I want to be proved wrong. I was not wrong.  The only remaining content of the box was a sad little piece of paper with instructions on how to use a product that was no longer contained in that box.  

So, at some point that day, someone else thought I'm going to go to the store to pick up an item. By pick up they meant secretly tear into the box, stuff the contents of the box in their pants/coat/purse/pocket and go home. And that totally made sense to them.

Even after knowing there was nothing in there, I took the empty box to the counter when I checked out and said "I'm pretty sure I'm the bearer of bad news" and handed the box the clerk because it only seemed right that they should know that someone had stolen from the store.  It even crossed my mind that I could be accused of stealing but I knew I didn't steal it and I couldn't just leave that sad misplaced box there for someone else to just happen upon. So I braced myself for extensive questioning and took a chance by turning in the evidence and apparently, I do not in anyway, shape or form look like a thief. The clerk took the box, obviously disgusted but asked me no questions and sent me on my way with my legit and paid for item. 

 

And now I have already spent too much of time trying to make a nonsensical thing make sense.

When I live in a house (2)

When I live in a house it will be this one (literally, we're under contract and will close on June 30th):

 My favorite room will be this one:

I'll have grown up dinners here:

I'll sit around and chat with friends new and old here:

And I'll be able to offer a place for friends to rest here:

When I live in this house, I will cherish every moment of everyday that I get to do life in the home of my dreams.

Eat This

The hubs read a book about food processing or eating organically or something and decided to experiment with a meatless life style for 30 days. With the exception of a couple of of times when I just couldn't say no to the meat cravings, I've been a willing accomplice.

There are definitely times when eating meat seems easier, like this one time when we were having people over for dinner. An unexpected meatless meal seemed be difficult to explain or expect other people to agree to try but we have wonderfully supportive friends who just went along with us.

The totality of my menu planning is fueled by Real Simple recipes and regularly they offer great looking vegetarian meals that I usually don't bother to make. Since we aim to cook dinner at home at least twice a week. This has been an opportunity to try out lots of different things I have never considered before.

This week I picked the potato-leek-flatbread (below, left) because I like potatoes and leeks and cheese. The hubs picked the polenta pizza (below,right) because...well, I don't know, I guess he likes polenta.

The flatbread was Monday night's dinner and it tasted as good as that photo looks. I went heavy on the Gruyere cheese and could have gone lighter on the leeks but definitely worth a repeat.  tonight, the polenta pizza gets a turn.

Palm Sunday

Lent Day 34: The Book of 1 Thessalonians

God says, only in unplanned, unarranged, unwelcomed, unmanageable, and thoroughly unenjoyable dark nights will My plan for your maturity unfold.

Listen to what an offbeat follower of Mine, Tim Farrington, wrote in A Hell of Mercy:

"You will be graced with the disaster your soul requires to find its way home."

John of the Cross put it this way:

"No matter how much an individual does through his own efforts, he cannot actively purify himself enough to be disposed in the least degree for the divine union of the perfection of love."

Your frustration with everything, including yourself, makes it possible to turn in deeper dependence to Me. Your weariness requires the strength of supernatural love to continue serving Me. Your haunting sense of futility shuts you up to a kind of endurance that can be sustained only with hope in My Son's return.

You are in a good place.

(from 66 Love Letters: A Conversation with God that Invites You into His Story by Dr. Larry Crabb, ©2009.)

Connectivity, Connectedness, Connections

This is where I work.  I first crossed this part of Hitt Street my first semester at Mizzou almost 15 years ago. Since then, especially now that I attend weekly staff meetings in Memorial Union, I have crossed it hundreds of times.  Its to the point where I don't even think about it anymore.


Now, this is also where I dance. This weekend stood in that crosswalk and busted a move. I danced in front of Memorial Union for the first and lets go ahead and say last time.  Walking across the crosswalk to go to staff meeting will never be quite the same again.