No Grasp of Your Reality

Psalm 27:11-14

Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty. I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

This morning, I cut fresh Black-eyed Susans, purple and pink Rose of Sharon, deep Purple Salvias and Oriental Lady’s-thumb arranged them in two used jars and took them to neighbors BJ and Jen. It was dear to see how it brightened each of their days. Jen has been cleaning all day, and BJ just passed her exams and now has her Realtor’s license.

While I was cleaning up the leftover leaves and stems on my counter, my doorbell rang. There was an older Asian gentleman with a kind smile. In his hand was a gorgeous bouquet of Gerber daisies, white hydrangeas and some other pretty purple flowers I’ll have to look up. “This is for Sarah,” he said. “Thanks… that’s me. They’re beautiful!” He left and I opened the card. They were from my dear college friend, Brandy! It felt like God was hugging me through a friend. It reminded me of Ps. 27, which talks about us seeing the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. The living are fellow Christians. They were more than flowers, they were encouragement. I also loved how, when I looked up the verse again, the placement of the verse was in the midst of seeking deliverance from false witnesses. It put tears in my eyes.

Thanks, God, for caring about me.
Thanks, Brandy, for being a messenger of the goodness of the Lord.

Sarah-and-Tom/sarahtom2After Tom left for work this morning, I went about my morning facial routine: Dove, cold water, a dab of Lubriderm. I noticed that the bathroom smelled distinctly manly and wonderful. My husband was up early, had shaved, and gone to work to provide for us — not to mention that he thoughtfully cleaned the sink when he was done with his morning routine. I had just painstakingly cleaned our bathroom sink a few days ago, so this made me feel really loved. It threw me for a loop for a moment because I remembered touching his smooth face this morning when I kissed him, but yet there was no trace of hair in the sink! I stopped for a moment and thanked God for blessing me with such a great husband.

costumeparty/214300_R1_16_9A Photo of Susan & Timothy Carlson. Bet you didn’t know that a traffic cone could hug a cowboy. Now you do.

Below is recipe for the salad I made for the moms at the kid’s costume party.
Put in a pot on the stove :
Chicken breasts
Two “glugs” of soy sauce and dry sherry
2 crushed garlic cloves
Water to cover chicken
Cover and Boil until cooked through, then slice the chicken thin and set aside. (Boiling in a marinade quickly infuses the chicken with flavor – as an alternative, you could use leftover chicken and sprinkle it with soy sauce before adding to the salad)

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They should have known better than to have a “suggestions” box

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My note:

The other day, I was preparing a salad to take on the go.
I poured the Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette into a little snack-size Ziplock bag, so that the salad wouldn’t become wilted enroute.
I got to thinking – there aren’t any salad dressing packets available “to go” – only if you’re eating at a fast food restaurant. How I would love to have my favorite salad dressing in a “to go” pack, so that I don’t have to fuss with the mess of pouring it into a Ziplock! It would keep salads fresh, and encourage people to prepare custom fresh salads from home for lunch, vs. having to buy a salad. Packs could be individual flavors, or a variety pack – for just that: variety!

Thanks for the delicious dressings. They’re inspiring!

With love,
Sarah Joy Albrecht
www.glamdring.org

Today I made a fabulous Summer Rice Salad, and even got to use some of the herbs from my garden!

If you’re looking for an alternative to pasta salad to bring to your next potluck, try this. People always ask for the recipe. I should say that my friend Beth Catranis introduced this to me when Aiden was born, and she brought over a meal.

This salad is a great use for leftover rice. It has a fresh, almost Mediterranean flavor. It would be excellent alongside a thinly-sliced cold, rare roast beef or even under a chilled salmon. Besides, who needs an excuse to use the almighty rice cooker?

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I’m sure I’m going to embarrass myself in this post, but here it goes.

On my last trip to Tokyo, I was coming through Shimbashi station when I ran into a group of people getting ready to play some instruments, so I stopped to listen. The lead instrument looked like a recorder, and there was a girl on violin, guitarist, and a guy sitting on the drum he was playing.

The music was enchanting… it reminded me of the folk music from the wedding scene in Braveheart. I stuck around for their entire three-song performance, and when they were done, I grabbed the cd they were selling.

Looking at the cd now, I can’t read a thing. The album is called “春風ウキウキ” (Spring Breeze Float Float), and the band is called “風絃流し”, which I think translates to something like “Wind Currents”. Of course, I have no idea how it’s pronounced.

Anyway, here are two samples, Bloom and Wonderland. Let me know what you think!

While Rafael Palmeiro is lying to the Senate and ruining whatever respect baseball players have left, the Cincinnati Reds offered a bit of an antidote, and raised my opinion of professional athletes substantially.

A young boy was taken to a Reds baseball game by his grandfather, during which, the grandfather collapsed of a heart-attack. Recognizing that paramedics attempting to resuscitate the man could be traumatic on the boy, a security officer took the boy to the Reds dugout, and apparently explained what was happening.

The boy spent the last two innings sitting on the bench, and the players spent their time celebrating their win with the boy. Even after the game was over, Ken Griffey Jr. stayed with the boy until his parents arrived to pick him up.

Clubhouse manager Rick Stowe said the Reds showered the boy with bats, wristbands, and autographed baseballs. Shortstop Felipe Lopez gave him the batting helmet, autographed, that Lopez wore in this year’s All-Star game.

Sadly, they were unable to revive the grandfather, who was pronounced dead at the hospital.

(via AP)

Too hot for coffee, but need a pick-me-up? Try this recipe from my friend Janine.

Prepare in a pitcher that holds at least 2 quarts:

Combine and stir:

• 1/2 cup of instant coffee
• 1/2 cup of boiling water

Stir in:

• 1 can Eagle Sweetend Condensed Milk
• 2 cups of cold water
• 1 quart cold chocolate milk

Serve over ice and with a nice cloud of Reddi-wip.
Sprinkle with grated chocolate for added yum factor.

Variations:

Fat free or low fat – Use fat free or low-fat milk. Both Eagle and Reddi-wip carry fat free versions of the product.

Additional flavor – use flavored instant coffee instead!

Would be great spiked with Kahlua or Bailey’s

Today, thanks to Netflix, I was watching Anne of Green Gables with the kids as I folded laundry. I love some of the lines from the movie.

This is from the scene where Anne, Ruby and Diana are pretending that Anne is the Lily Maid from the Lady of Shalott. She closes her eyes and lets her friends send her to a watery grave.

RUBY GILLIS: Gosh, she really looks dead. I’m frightened. Mrs. Lynde says that acting is a sin.

ANNE: Ruby, keep quiet. You’re spoiling the effect. Besides, this is hundreds of years before Mrs. Lynde was born. Diana, you arrange all of this. It’s ridiculous for Elaine to be talking when she’s supposed to be dead.

I found that the Anne of Green Gables series is on Read Print, a free online library.

Main Entry: strife
Pronunciation: ‘strIf
Function: noun
1 a : bitter sometimes violent conflict or dissension

“A *wrathful man stirs up strife, But he who is slow to anger allays contention.” Proverbs 15:18

“A perverse man spreads strife, And a slanderer separates intimate friends.” Proverbs 16:28

“For the churning of milk produces butter,
And pressing the nose brings forth blood;
So the churning of anger produces strife.” Proverbs 30:33

* “For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” James 1:20

Sarah-and-Tom/kiss One of the most comprehensive sites on Christian marriage and sexuality is The Marriage Bed. It is a ministry run by Paul and Lori Byerly. They do an excellent job at helping people think Biblically about stewardship and intimacy.

In addition to the parent website, there are related sites with helpful message boards and email tips for keeping the spark alive and better communicating with each other : The Generous Husband and the Generous Wife.

Currently, the theme for the Generous Wife emails is “Tips for Newlyweds.” Readers can share their tips to be added to the email reminders.

Here is the tip I submitted:
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Check out the new photo album link on the masthead. Tom is a master at play.

Last nights meeting was a bit anticlimactic. After everything leading up to this point, the meeting lasted about a half-hour, with the crux being that Sarah and I pleaded not guilty to all four counts. We also made a number of requests of the prosecutor, based on the information listed in the indictment, including a request to see the affidavits that are mentioned.

I asked my dad to act as council during the trial, since I think he’ll end up being better able to see the trial as a trial, and therefore do a more level-headed job than I could do.

So, now we have at least two weeks before the beginning of the trial itself, but I’ll post periodic updates as we find out anything new.

On the eve of our inquisition, I found an article on Credenda Agenda by Doug Jones entitled, “The Art of Pettiness“. Sometimes, when I cry out to God about how unfair my life is, my complaint is that I can’t write this well.

I encourage you to read the whole thing so you can sharpen your skills at being offended… unless, of course, you’re ironically-impaired, in which case, I would encourage you to stay away from the article, or anything else associated with a strong faith. Also, don’t read the Screwtape Letters…

At times, you might accidentally stumble across the fact that you’ve sinned against someone. You need to recognize this before someone else brings it to your attention. Before it becomes explicit, you need to get angry and defend something else. Anger is a sign of righteousness. God is often indignant with His people. Anger can be used to remind people implicitly that, though you might have some flaws, just like everyone else, they are forgetting the fundamental goodness you’ve shown everywhere else. A good show of anger will make others return to their former state of gratitude for all you’ve done. Be sure, though, that when you see other people getting angry that you try to imagine the sin they’re hiding. That person is your secret ally; don’t expose him. Anger is a wonderful cover for sin, though the masses haven’t picked up on this yet.