Got Milk?: The Simple Woman's Daybook

If you would like to join in and post your own Daybook, please head on over to visit Peggy at The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today:  Sunday, June 29, 2014

Outside my window … 90+ degrees with a relative humidity of 1596%. 

 

Praising God for…  the answered prayers in my Sunday School class.
 

In prayer for...  Those who don't yet know Christ, my upcoming share time at Celebrate Recovery this Friday, my own heart issues (see below).

I am thinking... I'm still thinking about how to conquer this undercurrent of anger and bitterness that's grabbed me.  I'm working on changing my thinking patterns, but yet it's still there.  I'm wondering now if God's trying to tell me something's not right or that I need to deal with something or someone, or am I just hacked off with no good reason?

I am thankful... for God's love. 

 

In the kitchen...  Not sure.  I've got to get some groceries.

I am wearing... Black shorts and running shirt.

I am creating... WIP's, items for the workshop and getting ready to start on Christmas items.
 

I am going... nowhere tonight.  Going to do an indoor workout in a few, then a shower, and probably to bed. I wanted to ride and walk today, but it is way too hot and humid. 
 

I am wondering... about why runners keep recommending I drink chocolate milk after a run.  Wouldn't that make my puke like a fountain?  I thought chocolate milk was bad for me.  Weird.

I am reading...still reading God is Not Mad at You by Joyce Meyer.  I've also started a book called Running Within.

I am hoping...that my hands fly this week so I don't have to work over the weekend.  I'm also hoping that my time for the Woodstock training run is better this week.  I want to run more than walk this week.  I've mostly been walking them. It's time to pick up the pace.

I am looking forward to... getting an oil change for my car.  It needs it.  It also needs a good washing and detailing. 

 
I am learning… I learned about my faith walk from a fitness magazine..

Around the house... I want to wash my car and do some work outside.  Maybe tomorrow morning, I can get to it.
 

I am pondering...  today's sermon.  It was on Genesis 29 where Jacob works seven years to earn his wife Rachel.  Rachel's father, Laban, tricks Jacob by giving him Leah first and getting him to work seven more years for Rachel.  The rest of the chapter covers the ongoing family dysfunction.  My pondering is about Leah.  What do you do if, like me, in the eyes of others you are a Leah instead of a Rachel?  Do you succumb to the whims of powerful people for a crumb of compassion, fleeting and counterfeit though it may be?  Do you try to imitate Rachel to get what you need or want?  I'm not even putting this in the context of marriage.  I'm just talking about life in general.
 

A favorite quote for today... "Defeat comes from looking back, distraction comes from looking around, discouragement comes from looking down, but deliverance comes from looking up!" - Jerry Savelle

One of my favorite things... Hats and caps designed for people with big heads.  I have a large head (I'm such a lady) and can't wear a standard baseball cap without getting a headache.  My friend Jim gave me an oversized cap to wear outside and it was life changing.  I don't have to run feeling like my brain is being choked off.

A few plans for the rest of the week:  Working in the workshop.  Sav-A-Life and band practice on Tuesday, Woodstock 5k training on Thursday, playing with the community band at JackVegas' annual Independence Day celebration Thursday.  Speaking at Celebrate recovery Friday.

A peek into my day...  Finished this painting for the July senior dance.  Yep, I'm actually done early.  Yay me!

 

Straight and Narrow...Not Kilimanjaro

My friend Carla gave me some back issues of Runner's World magazine to glean some knowledge from.  While many of the articles seem to speak to the professional runner instead of the average Joe (or the ultra-extreme novice paw-paw runner like me), many tidbits of knowledge were helpful, and the human interest stories were my favorite.

It wasn't all New Balance running shoes and kale though.  One of the most disturbing articles I read was by Charlie Engle in the May 2011 issue (read the complete article here).  Engle chronicles a trail marathon series called the Barkley.  He describes it as "Brutal, terrifying, inhuman[e] (sic).  The organizers...don't care what you call the toughest trail-running competition in the world, as long as you don't finish it."

The course is a little over 100 miles, divided into 5 loops of approximately 20 miles (depending on whether the participant can stay on course), each of which must be completed in a 12 hour period.  Whichever way a runner chooses to run his first loop, he must run the next in the opposite direction and switch directions until the run is completed.  The race course is full of steep inclines, treacherous descents, unpredictable weather, no clear course markings, and no guides or provisions, save a jug or two of water somewhere on the course, if the runners can find them.  It's marathons, marine boot camp, mud runs, obstacle courses, Survivor, and Shark Week all rolled into one.

 

Out of the hundreds of runners who've attempted this mayhem, at the time of the article, only nine had finished.  The author was not one of them.  Extreme fatigue and hyperthermia set in, and he dropped out after only completing two loops of the course.

As horrible as this is, and the fact that people actually sign up for this torture on purpose, it's much more sinister than that.  The selection process for this race has the complexity of trying to sign up for Obamacare (yes, I said it).  If a runner is selected for this very excusive race, this is the e-mail they receive:

Our heartfelt condolences on your recent selection into the Barkley Marathon field for 20--.  Even though the odds were all in your favor, with six applicants for every slot, in any drawing someone must lose.  This time, it was you.  Should you come up with any plausible excuse to avoid the painful failure that is the Barkley, please let us know as soon as possible.  As incredible as it might seem, those other five people still want your slot.  Otherwise, there is a very bad thing waiting for you.

At the beginning of the race, the coordinator lets each runner know that he expects them not to finish, and actually celebrates when they fail.  With sadistic giddiness, he actually plays Taps on a bugle to let the other participants know that the trail has clamed another victim. If someone does have the audacity to finish, he's disappointed that he didn't make the course hard enough.

Now comes the commentary...

I've not been running very long, but I don't care if I've been running 50 years, I wouldn't run that thing if you paid me $1,000,000.00--I'd spend it all in the emergency room.  So, what has this to do with my journey?

Like many Christ followers, I've said that if people really saw the true Jesus and how much He loves them, no one would turn away from Him; they couldn't help but love Him.  Just like my dissertation on marriage, maybe the problem isn't in the reception, but in how the Gospel is presented.

• Is God presented as a sadistic ogre, just chomping at the bits waiting to pounce on failure?  Or, is He presented as the Father who is jealous for us; who continues to warn us, draw us, love us, and take care of us (Romans 2:4)?
• Is the pathway to Heaven presented as a the straight and narrow path with clear instructions from the Word on how to navigate it (Psalm 119:105).  Or, is it preached as a path like the Berkley; no clear direction, no help, no provision, no nothing?
• If someone has the audacity to actually come to Christ, do we let them know that they are not alone and now set in a new family (Psalm 68:6)? Or, do we turn away in jealously and like Prince and tell them "in this life, you're on your own."?
• Do we make the path to salvation harder with our own personal list of do's and don'ts, or do we set up clear path markers of the ease of salvation and walking with Christ?  No, being a disciple of Christ isn't easy, but the Lord Himself puts an anointing of ease on those who want to obey Him (Matthew 11:29-30).

Unfortunately, this problem is not just with those who don't yet know Christ.  Many Old Testament ideas get brought into the New Testament church and we end up with a passel of Christians with no joy, who think God is mad and only pleased when they fulfill and impossible list of rules and church activities.

I am in the throws of a paradigm shift.  I've been a Jesus freak for 28 years, and I'm just now getting a small taste into the ease of obedience and the freedom of walking with Christ.  It's a tough shift to make.  Most days I feel like the Barkley runners--preprogramed to fail and having to overcome tremendous opposition to even hope to succeed.  God didn't do that; control freaks who try to mix God's grace and the Old Testament law together did that. I don't blame them for my choices.  They gave me the recipe, it was my choice whether to mix the ingredients, cook it up, and gobble it up or not.

The good news is that there is hope.  The truth of the Gospel is right there in every page of the Bible.  Like Kenneth Copeland says, "The Bible is easy to understand.  It takes a highly paid theologian to mess it up."  True that!

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet
    and a light for my path.

 

Psalm 119:105 - New Living Translation

Dodging Naners: The Friday 5

Go over to http://f.riday5.com/ for the weekly prompts.

1. What’s something this past week that made you slightly bananas? A crochet pattern, of all things.  It's a pattern I've done several times, but for some reason it doesn't always come out right.  I literally had to cut my work apart to fix the error.  It drives me nuts because it's an easy pattern, but the stitch counts have to be exact.
2. What did you do last Sunday? Went to church, came home and took a nap, then went to worship team practice.  What are you planning for this coming Sunday?  Church, of course, but the rest of the day is up for grabs.  Because so many people are out of town, we're not having practice tomorrow, so I'm not sure what I'm doing tomorrow.  I may go riding.
3. What’s something you fudged this past week?  If you mean fudge, as in to dodge or avoid something, then sort of.  It was kind of an accidental fudge.  I avoided having to deal with something, but I didn't try to avoid it; the opportunity just never presented itself.
4. What was this week’s most interesting scoop?  Nothing, really.
5. What was the cherry on top of your good or bad week?  Everyone talking about, or showing pictures of their vacations and exotic summer trips kind of bummed me out.  Plus, more of my friends still doing poverty shaming on social media.  Just ticks me off!

Five Minute Friday: "Lost."

Thanks to Lisa-Jo Baker at Five Minute Friday for the prompts.

 

 

 Amazing grace.  How sweet the sound

that saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now am found.

Was blind, but now I see.



GO!

 

Oftentimes, I feel lost.  There's the good kind of lost:  Lost in a good book.  Lost in thought.  Lost in a great sermon.  Losing track of time when I'm "in the groove" on an art project.  There's the bad kind of lost:  Lost in a crowd of people.  Lost on the road.  Then, there's the worst kind of lost there is; a lost eternity.

 

Being found in God's love and Christ's sacrifice was the greatest day of my life.  No other victory matters without that one.  I could live a life of total opulence, but without being found, it all means nothing.

 

I pray often for those who are still lost.  It doesn't matter if they want to be found, or even know or care that they are lost, God still draws them with His goodness (Romans 2:4), and touches their hearts with His love (John 3:16).

 

FULL STOP!

 

Sunny Girlfriend: The Weekly Hodgepodge

Want to join the party?  Go on over to From This Side of the Pond  for the Hodgepodge questions.

What summer activity most takes you back to your own childhood?

Bike riding.  During the summers of my childhood, I'd ride my bike everywhere; to the Eastwood center and pool, to vacation Bible school, and to the store.  Summer was the season of biking around the neighborhood pretending to be Wonder Woman, Batgirl, or the Duke brothers from Dukes of Hazzard. 

What's your favorite summer smell?

The smell in the air after a good summer rain.  The smell of barbeque makes me think of summer.

It's beach season in the US of A...so how do you feel about sand?

I think sand at the beach is wonderful.  I would love to go to the beach and learn to make a sandcastle.

Sun tea, SunChips, sunflower seeds, Capri Sun, Sunny Delight, Sun-Maid raisins, sun-dried tomatoes...your favorite food or beverage with sun in its name?

I really like SunChips.  Garden Salsa is my favorite flavor.

What's your favorite way to cool off on a hot summer day?

Get inside under the air conditioning with a cold drink (water, tea, or the occasional soft drink).

Share a favorite song with the word sun or sunshine in it's title.

 

 

Sunny Girlfriend by The Monkees

 

Tell us about a time you had an exceedingly good or truly awful customer service experience. If it was awful, did you report it? Ever go back there again?

I can't think of one particular negative incident, but it pains me that I usually have a bad customer service experience when I go to one of my favorite stores--Hobby Lobby.  It's just a shame that the helpers at a craft store don't know anything about their products--what they are or where they are in the store.  It's annoying, especially when I've memorized where things are just in time for them to rearrange the store.  I wish I could work there and really help customers.

One of the best customer service experiences was at a Quincy's Restaurant in Anniston, Alabama.  The waitress was a joy and she went way beyond the call of duty.  I went there several times--until I realized they pooled the server's tips.  This wonderful server's tips were being divided amongst mediocre and rude servers.  She eventually tired of it and quit.  I stopped eating there, and eventually the place shut down.  It's a Western Sizzlin' now (I think). 

Insert your own random thought here.

Played around with the baby dress pattern from last week and made some more accessories to go with it.  They fit a newborn/infant.  I sold one set and gave the other as a baby shower gift.  I also got me a new little dollbaby model.  I've named her Jasmine.

I've also been playing around with hats and removable accessories.  I've already sold three.

Crepuscular Trek: The Simple Woman's Daybook

If you would like to join in and post your own Daybook, please head on over to visit Peggy at The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today:  Sunday, June 22, 2014

Outside my window … A light breeze, clear skies, and singing birds.  I want to take a nap so bad.

 

Praising God for…  Health and strength.
 

In prayer for...  Those who don't yet know Christ.  One of my friends whose sister passed away yesterday.

I am thinking... about marketing strategies.

I am thankful... for good ministers who preach the truth in love. 

 

In the kitchen...  Had a huge salad for lunch.  Will probably keep it light for dinner. 

I am wearing... Black pants and running shirt.

I am creating... Items for the workshop and for July's senior dance door prizes.
 

I am going... To worship team practice this afternoon, then to bed. 
 

I am wondering... about some weird skin rash/thing on my arm.  It looks like I've been burned, itches like ringworm, but it's too dry to be ringworm.  Who knows? 

I am reading... God is Not Mad at You by Joyce Meyer.  I'm also reading some running magazines a friend brought me yesterday.

I am hoping...that I make some sales this week.

I am looking forward to... playing with the community band at JackVegas' annual Independence Day celebration on July 3.  Speaking at Celebrate recovery on July 4th.

 
I am learning… that marking time in life is just as boring as marking time in marching band.

Around the house... just a little tidying up.
 

I am pondering...  why certain people get a pass in life while others don't.
 

A favorite quote for today...

"If you want something sweet, order the pound cake. Anybody who puts sugar in the cornbread is a heathen who doesn't love the Lord, not to mention Southeastern Conference football." - Lewis Grizzard

One of my favorite things... Cute bags.

A few plans for the rest of the week:  Working in the workshop.  Sav-A-Life and band practice on Tuesday, Woodstock 5k training on Thursday, Celebrate Recovery on Friday.

A peek into my day...  I ran my first twilight 5k last night.  It was fun, but I still feel like I've been thrown down a flight of stairs.

Some of my zany friends from Sav-A-Life volunteered at the 5k last night.  They cheered me on at the one mile mark and made sure the booger bear didn't get me.  :)

 

Brought to You By the Letter B: The Friday 5

Go over to http://f.riday5.com/ for the weekly prompts.

I'm trying a new blogging prompt called Friday 5. The blog author gives you five random questions to answer.  This one may be like Thursday 13 that I only do it once in a while.  Let me know what you think. Here goes.

This week first thing I had to do was go to a random letter generator and answer the five questions based on that letter.  The letter I got was B.

1. What article of clothing, whose name begins with the letter, have you never worn?  Bikini--'nuf said.  :)
2. What book, whose title begins with the letter, are you looking forward to reading?  The Blessing of the Lord by Kenneth Copeland.  I've had the book for several months, but haven't gotten into it yet. BTW-- For all of us grammar and mechanics nuts the T in The does not count. 
3. What mode of transportation, whose name begins with the letter, seems like it would be fun?  Boat.  I would really like to go on a cruise or two someday.
4. What form of exercise, whose name begins with the letter, have you recently engaged in? Well, Bicycling of course.
5. What fictional character, whose name begins with the letter, would be good company on a long trip? Bob Cratchit from A Christmas Carol.  He would be courteous and thankful.  He wouldn't complain; he's just be happy to be there. He would most likely take good care of anyone who went along.

Five Minute Friday: "Release"

Thanks to Lisa-Jo Baker at Five Minute Friday for the prompts.

 

GO!

The first thing I thought of was the song "Release Me" by Engelbert Humperdinck (Anybody saying lines from The Princess Bride here?), but I LOATHE that song.  I had to listen to some old Michael Jackson tunes to wash it out of my brain. 

Release means letting go.  There are some things I'm not sure I can let go of.  There are old wounds that I've caused that I haven't yet found a way to make amends for.  There are old wounds in my own heart I would like to release, but situations keep coming up that rip away at the scar and open up the wound all over again.  So, it's back to recovery I go.

Things I want to release in my life.

• People who don't love me or want me around, yet I keep trying to get them to.
• The curse of poverty that seems to hang on my neck like a noose.
• The body fat that is still attached to my body that reminds me of failure and self hatred.
• Shame over a physical defect I keep trying to hide.
• The need to please people who can't be pleased.
• There's more, but I'm about out of time.

I wish I could get a bat and a bunch of baseballs, go to the batting cages, write these things on the balls, and whack the snot out of them over and over again to release the anger and disappointment behind each one.  Oh well, I don't own a bat or baseballs and have no idea how to load the ball machine.  I'd probably get beaned in the forehead.

FULL STOP!

#59 Empty Shelf Challenge 02 [101 in 1001]

My first review for the challenge can be found here.

Book: You Can't Put No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll .

Author: Lewis Grizzard

Info: Copyright 1991 Villard Books

Where acquired: Public Library book sale.

Availability: Used copies are available through amazon.com.

Why:  I was introduced to the writings of Mr. Grizzard in 8th grade by my English teacher, Mr. Gosdin.  I haven't read any of his books since graduate school, so finding this treasure for little of nothing was a real treat.

Rating (on a scale of 1-4 hashtags):  # # # #

What it's about:  Everything.  In this collection of columns from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Mr. Grizzard hilariously tackles everything from the economy to sports.  This was written in the early 90's, but it reads like Grizzard is alive and tackling these issues right now.

What I Like:

Portions of the book literally had me laughing aloud.  Some of the great one liners:

• On the subject of mooning:  "Incidentally, who else my friend from high school mooned included the chief of police, a Greyhound bus filled with passengers, and a monthly meeting of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.  He grew up to be an astronaut."
• On sweet cornbread:  "If you want something sweet, order the pound cake.  Anybody who puts sugar in the cornbread is a heathen who doesn't love the Lord, not to mention Southeastern Conference football."
• On health food fads:  "Any day I expected to see a commercial that said, 'Tide.  The only laundry detergent with oat bran.'"
• On his home state:  "The mating call of the Georgia Peach: 'Lordy, I'm sooooo drunk.'"

This book is not all funnies though.  He expounds on subjects like his mother's illness and death, and the heart condition that he didn't know would claim his life a few years later.  Grizzard has the uncanny ability to go from funny to serious in 10 seconds flat.  His humor is a combination of Rick and Bubba and Jerry Clower.  I liked the book because it reads like sitting on the porch talking and laughing with family.  One does not have to be Southern to find joy in Grizzard's words; but it helps.

What I didn’t like: 

The author does get slightly risqué in parts of the book.  However, it's quite tame compared to what we can see just scrolling through our Twitter feed.

To sum up: My main takeaway from the book was this:

Continue to write, laugh, and love.  Tell the politically correct speech police to go sit on a tater.

Want to join the challenge?  Click the empty shelf photo on the right to learn more.  It's not too late!

The Island of Lazy: The Weekly Hodgepodge

Want to join the party?  Go on over to From This Side of the Pond  for the Hodgepodge questions.

Since you weren't Hodgepodging last Wednesday, how did you pass the time?

Getting dental work done. I would have rather been Hodgepodging.

What's the first word that comes to mind when I say marriage? Yes, one word.

Prison.  (Actually, the speech on "mawage" in The Princess Bride also comes to mind, but that's more than one word.)

Summer officially arrives in the Northern hemisphere later this week. Does it feel like summer where you live? Describe your idea of the perfect summer day.

Definitely.  It's been in the 90's and humid as all get out around here already.  In that, the South is always ahead of the curve. 

"Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability."(Sam Keen) Is laziness ever respectable? Do you have a lazy summer planned, or something semi-ambitious?

There's a difference between being lazy and simply resting and relaxing.  Being lazy is never respectable because it's refusing to do what needs to be done.  Rest and relaxation is respectable because it's recharging the mind, body, and spirit.

As far as my summer goes, no, I don't have a lazy summer planned.  I don't have time to sit around and do nothing.  I do plan on finding ways to have some fun, but there are no trips or anything in my plans.  There's no budget for that right now.  

Past or present, who's your favorite television dad? Why is he a favorite? Is he anything like your own dad?

Cliff Huxtable from The Cosby Show.  Most TV shows make dads look inept and stupid.  Not this one.  Dr. Huxtable is intelligent and funny.  He helps around the house and with the kids instead of just leaving everything to his wife while he sits on the couch drinking beer and watching the game.  Cliff is like my dad in that they both love music, both work hard, and both have a great sense of humor.

June 18th is International Picnic Day...share a favorite picnic memory.

Don't have one yet.

The travel site Trip Advisor lists the top five islands in the world for 2014 as- Ambergris Caye in Belize Cayes, Providenciales in Turks and Caicos, Bora Bora in French Polynesia, Marco Island Florida, and Lewis and Harris in The Outer Hebrides (Scotland). Have you been to any of these? Of those listed (and if price were not a factor) which would you most like to book for a holiday?

Not been to any of them.  If I could visit any them, of course my choice would be Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.  When I do get the chance to visit Scotland, I may never come back.  :)

Insert your own random thought here.

Finished up this little ditty in the workshop today. 

Curly Cue Baby Dress

Not ESPN Love [Auntie's God-Breezes]

The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior [Who saves]! He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest [in silent satisfaction] and in His love He will be silent and make no mention [of past sins, or even recall them]; He will exult over you with singing.

 

Zephaniah 3:17 (Amplified Version)

 

Today, I started reading Joyce Meyer's book God is Not Mad at You. I've only gotten through the introduction and chapter one but I'm already getting a better understanding of God's love. Or better yet, a refreshing of God's love. 

 

If I didn't know any better, I'd swear Joyce Meyer lives in my head.  She says on page 11 "I believed that God loved me in some sort of general impersonal way, but I did not know the fierce, fiery, all consuming love that God has for His children."  I've been a Christ follower for 28 years.  I gave my heart to Him because of His unconditional love.  I thrived on His love, shared His love--then started believing that his love was for everyone but me.  I had that same mentality of "impersonal" love and disappointment.  I knew that God's love wasn't like that for the non-believer, but once I became a believer, I figured God was easier to displease.  After all, shouldn't I know better? 

 

My fear that God is mad at and disappointed in me is rooted in a lack of belief about God's personal love for me.  If I believe that God's love is general, not personal, then that means He could miss somebody; and that somebody would always be me.  It's kind of like the husband sitting on the couch watching the game.  His wife says "I love you."  He clicks the remote to ESPN 14 and impassively says, "Yeah, I love you too." (That is not a sexist statement; if I were married, I'd be the wife sitting on the couch watching Braves baseball or Alabama football saying "Yeah, I love you too.  ROLL TIDE!")  There's no intimacy, no passion, only general lip service.  God is not like that.  His love is for all and for one person at a time.

 

 

Caught in the Ceiling Fan: The Simple Woman's Daybook

If you would like to join in and post your own Daybook, please head on over to visit Peggy at The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today:  Sunday, June 15, 2014

Outside my window … The quiet of a Sunday afternoon.  Blue skies with a few fluffy clouds floating by.  Busy bees buzzing.

 

Praising God for…  Shoes, teeth that don't hurt, a good Sunday school lesson, and a Father's Day church service that wasn't the usual "rippin' Dad a new one" message.
 

In prayer for...  I'm daily praying for those who don't know Him; that's God's goodness will continue to draw them to repentance (Romans 2:4).  In prayer for friends going through trials.  Praying that God's favor would rest on my craft business.

I am thinking... about motherhood--more specifically I've been thinking about whether it's even possible that sometime in the near future I could actually become a wife and mother (in that order).   Then, if it is possible, could I even succeed at it?  You'd think that I would have blogged about this subject ad nauseam, but it's been in my thoughts

I am thankful... for a roof over my head, for clothes and shoes, for a good dentist, for loving friends.

 

In the kitchen...  Not sure. 

I am wearing... Running shirt and capris that are getting a little tight.  Time to hit it hard again.

I am creating... Items for the workshop.  Working on some WIP's (Works In Progress) for charity.
 

I am going... I'm volunteering at Sav-A-Life tomorrow, then heading for the gym.  Band practice Tuesday and running various errands throughout the week.  Today?  I'm going to take a nap.
 

I am wondering... how does the squeaky wheel get the grease? 

I am reading... finishing up a book by Lewis Grizzard.  Going to start a new book tomorrow.

I am hoping...that this is a good week.

I am looking forward to... more changes.  Scary, I know, but I need to allow the changes to take place.

 
I am learning… I still have many fears to conquer.

Around the house... laundry and straightening up.
 

I am pondering...  God's love and grace.  I've said it before, but I need to ponder on it again.  We Christ followers have much grace for those who don't yet know Him, not as much for those who say they do, and absolutely none for ourselves.  that ought not be.  I am the worst of the lot.
 

A favorite quote for today...

"I just really feel like the pool counts as a bath for kids under 12. I mean, with the chlorine and all." - Beth Moore

One of my favorite things... Ceiling fans.  Oh my goodness.  My old place didn't have ceiling fans, so it was very hard to keep the place cool in the summer.  My new digs have ceiling fans and they are wonderful!  I actually get cold sometimes.

A few plans for the rest of the week:  Working in the workshop this week.

A peek into my day...  I don't care if the lists aren't done and that I have a load of laundry to do, I'm relaxing today!

Five Minute Friday: "Messenger."

Thanks to Lisa-Jo Baker at Five Minute Friday for the prompts.

 

 

 

 

GO!

 

I can't think of a song or scripture or anything appropriate for this one.  Hmmm... the first thing that comes to mind is "don't shoot the messenger."  But that will never do.

 

Tick, tock, tick, tock...

 

What am I a messenger of?  I hope that it is that God loves me and cares for me even when I don't "do" Christianity right.  I hope that I am a messenger of optimism--there's enough pessimism in this world.  I hope that I am a messenger of humor and healthy sarcasm.  People without a sense of humor scare me.

 

How do I disseminate the message?  Through spoken and written words, through music.  I've been looking for a way to display my life's message through my art without writing scriptures or sayings on everything.  Nothing wrong with that; it's just not me.

 

Who can receive me as the messenger?  That's the crux of the matter,  I need to be a more fit messenger in every way possible.  There's so much that needs to change before I can be an effective messenger of God's goodness. Yes, it's fine if me, as the messenger, has dealt with pain.  I just don't think it's a good idea to continue to do so.

 

FULL STOP!

Five Minute Friday: "Hands"

Thanks to Lisa-Jo Baker at Five Minute Friday for the prompts.

 

 

Greet one another with an holy kiss.

II Corinthians 13:12 (King James Version)

 

Greet one another with a holy embrace.

II Corinthians 13:12 (The Message Paraphrase)

 

GO!

 

Imagine going through your day...your week without the loving touch of another human being's hands.  No hugs, no handshakes, no pats on the back, no baby kisses, no nothing.  Welcome to my world.

 

I go through most of my days without human touch.  I'm blessed when I'm at Sav-A-Life and my little boyfriend is there to cuddle.  Or, when Auntie's babies come by and want to play.  Or, when once a week someone from church may offer a hug or handshake.  I usually have to initiate the contact, but that's starting to feel desperately creepy.

 

Did you know that the average human being needs touch for good mental health? 

 

I'm guilty.  I'm a tactile person.  Always have been.  When I was little, my hands were the main door to my world.  After my surgery, that need for touch and to touch never left.  I learn many concepts by touch.  I play musical instruments and touch type my qwerty keyboard.  I don't ever want to lose any of my five senses, but no matter what my sense of touch must remain.  I need hands; we all need hands.

 

FULL STOP!

Grilled Duck Lips: The Weekly Hodgepodge

Want to join the party?  Go on over to From This Side of the Pond  for the Hodgepodge questions.

 

I've read several posts and status updates recently describing end of year school field trips. Do you remember taking school field trips as a kid? Where did you go and do you recall a favorite? For any parents responding today, have you ever chaperoned a school field trip, and if so where?

As I talked about in my Hodgepodge post "The Electric Mayhem," my senior year I traveled with my high school marching band to Washington DC.  The only other school field trips I remember are going to the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama when I was in sixth grade, and going to the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in Montgomery, Alabama to see MacBeth soon after we got back from DC.  I'm sure we went on other school field trips, but all I can remember are the trips I took with my Girl Scout troop.

What's something you're tired of seeing online?

• Advertisements - I can't even view most pages now without weeding through a mess of ads for stuff I don't care about.
• Duck lip photos - just stop.  Y'all look stupid!
• Pictures of food - yes, I did post a couple of food pictures during the 30 day photo blog challenge, but I don't post every meal I ever eat, cook, or buy.  What are people trying to prove with that? 
• Pictures of dogs and cats.
• My losing scores on Words With Friends.
• Hateful memes.
• This is going to sound hateful, but I'm tired of seeing Bible based posts from someone one minute, then a meme full of the "n" word and the "f" word the next minute from the same person.  What's up with that?
• The "if you don't share this, you hate Jesus, your mom, kids with cancer, puppies, kitties, Rick and Bubba, etc."  Those make my middle finger twitch.

June is the month for roses. Which of the following expressions would you say has most recently applied to your life-'everything's coming up roses', 'there's no rose without a thorn', 'came out smelling like a rose', or 'wearing rose-colored glasses'? 

Well, none of those, really.  So, I'll just show a picture of a rose. How's that?

 

When grilling outdoors do you prefer gas or charcoal? Who does the grilling at your house? What's the last thing you ate that was cooked on a grill?

I've never grilled with anything but charcoal.  I haven't done any grilling for a long time.  I hope to get a grill pan someday so I can do some pseudo grilling.  The last grilled thing I ate was a blackened (burnt) hot dog someone made on Memorial Day.

Are you afraid of the dark?

Not in familiar surroundings.  It's unfamiliarity that creeps me out, not the dark itself.

Share a favorite song with a number in it's title.

 

Won by One by Mylon Lefevre and Broken Heart

 

"Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."(C.G. Jung). Do you agree? Why or why not?

I do agree.  Zig Ziglar said, "Some of us learn from other people's mistakes and the rest of us have to be the other people."  I don't mind learning from other's mistakes; I just don't like being the mistake maker others learn from.

Insert your own random thought here.

If you've enjoyed the pictures of the crafts I've made, go on over to my new blog Auntie's Workshop.  Thanks.