Texas Chainsaw...not so much

Tonight at Mosaic...the scary welder mask/chainsaw wielding/pantless/smelly guy came in. And...he was not so scary, kinda smelly, and didn't have a chainsaw. He also put money in the donation box - and I felt ashamed and asked for Jesus to forgive me and remind me again and again that he loves us all and that Mosaic is here for HIM and I am here for HIM.

I say that not just for platitude's or because it sounds good...it also requires a serious look into our mental health system in this country. We do not do a very good job (church or otherwise) of taking care of this people group. That's for another blog (or thesis) on another day. Right now, I have to tell the TCM Guy what time it is...cause he's asking.

Breakfast at the Falls

Today my mom treated her girls (my two sisters and I)to breakfast at Snoqualmie Falls - Salish Lodge. We had the "Country Breakfast" and no joke...here is what we got:

Course 1: Parfait (yogurt, fruit and a granola sprinkle) with two types of pastry. I had a scone and an orange brioche.
Course 2: Snoqualmie steel-cut oatmeal with a peach/cranberry compote served with milk and brown sugar
Course 3: Three eggs (served how you like), shoe string potatoes, apple wood sausage, ham and two pieces of bacon. This was also served with a buttermilk biscuit.
Course 4: Buttermilk pancakes.

It was so good! The beverages were also very good (I am grounded for the "coffee" I ordered...he he!) and we all shared the "chocolate pot" which was basically heaven in a cup.

It was one of the most fun times I've had in a long, long time. I was with three of the people I love most in the whole world and it didn't matter that we were overweight, skinny, cranky, happy, single, married, poor, rich, young or old...it was just nice being together and loving each other...we laughed really hard (Holly did not wet her pants) and we just enjoyed one another. I think that we should make this a regular thing - even if it's Denny's or Family Pancake...I need these women in my life on a regular basis!

Thanks Mom, for thinking of us and bringing us together for a much needed time of fun, relaxation, great food and a little nip! :)

Why sometimes I love Community

As most of you may know, one of the burden's of my heart recently has been my folks and their care and employment. My dad lost his pastorate in Bellingham so he has been scrambling trying to find something to make life meaningful. My mom has been the breadwinner working for my 99 year old grandma and that has helped a lot!

Today, my dad got a call from someone in our church. She is head of a department at Edmonds Community College and offered my dad a job as an adjunct faculty member. He will be able to teach a series of classes on making life changes - not faith-based but can offer some advice and stuff. I am just thankful that in our church, Mark let dad do a Sunday School class and Mary came and met him and now several years later it turns into something (I think) my dad has always wanted to do. What this could lead to is also amazing. I truly believe in the Lord's care and purposeful acts in our lives and am so thankful to be in community with these people - for better or worse. One never knows what will happen.

I'm in a grant writing class this week at SPU. It's so intense that I come home with one eye closed every night. Luckily, tomorrow is Wednesday and we're almost done. I think this skill set will be a great addition to the school, Mosaic and SFC.

Quarter #2 Done

I just submitted my final paper to end quarter #2! I'm taking two classes again starting July 2 - Juvenile Delinquency and Grief Counseling - should be interesting.

I literally have *nothing* to do right now and it feels great. I tried to see if my mom wanted to hang out and go to Salvage Studio - but I guess she is busy or doing something else...oh well.

I am going to watch all my old Tivo shows from February! Happy Saturday!

$21 a week/Food Challenge

As I was sipping my Diet Coke w/lime and listening to NPR today, they talked about the "food stamp challenge." Many senators are participating this week in this challenge in an effort to up the food stamp subsidy (tied to the Farm Bill) and trying to live on the average amount that food stamp recipients receive or $21.00/week - if you do the math that is $1.00/meal. This does not include WIC-which also subsidizes food for families w/kids. I thought about this as I was reading the choices these people were making - lots of peanut butter and tuna fish and I thought about taking the challenge myself.

My weekly budget (when I'm Southbeaching) is about $50.00/week, this includes a lot of veggies (which are not cheap) and some pre-packaged foods. So, to go to $21/week would limit those choices. Again, I do not think this would include WIC - which as I remember there was always leftover eggs, cheese and milk.

The worst part was when they were talking with a food stamp recipient about the jar of spaghetti sauce that gets broken - that was supposed to cover several meals and now the person can't feed anyone in her family - there is no more money to buy another jar.

I am all for raising awareness of what the government likes to call "Food insecurity" - I guess it's easier to hear than POOR, or POVERTY, or STARVATION...and I think that if we all tried this together, for just 7 days...we could go far in raising our awareness of what it feels like to be truly insecure and incredibly creative. Thankfully, after a week, I can buy diet Cokes again but for several million Americans, this is a weekly challenge.

I may try this and post what I've purchased and eaten - another reason why I love Mosaic!

Reason #428 why I like working in the wilderness

We have two (twins) baby fawns that just came out for the first time today-wobbly legs and all. They are so cute! I will try to get a picture soon...

Sunday Nights

In the summer of my youth, Sunday nights were the most fun. After church, sometimes we would go to Mr. K's or VIP's with a killer kid's menu. But the best was when we used to go to the store and my dad would let us pick out whatever we wanted for dinner - we finally got smart enough to share our picks (Holly and me) so one person would get a dessert to share and one would get Totino's pizza roles that burnt your chin when you bit into them. It would stay light for what seemed like forever. Then, to know that you didn't have to go to school the next day was how heaven will be - I am sure.

Now, in my life, Sunday nights suck. For some reason, they remind me of how alone I am. I usually try to have friends over or go out with H&H, B&E - but friends are busy and Brent is grounded...so I'm home. I do not know what it is about Sundays that make me very lonely and faced with the fact that I am alone...but it happens almost every Sunday. I like my job now, so I no longer stress out over that, but something happens in my psyche, only on Sunday nights, to make me feel this way. I wish they had a single-use Zoloft for just such an occasion.

I must admit, my faith was strengthened this weekend - the Lord answered a very timely prayer on my behalf. He took care of me - and maybe that is why this Sunday I do not feel as alone.

Justice for all

On May 2, 1964, Charles Moore & Henry Dee, 19, were hitchhiking along a rural Mississippi road. Charles Moore (pictured at left) was a college student and Henry Dee worked at a local lumber yard. As they were walking, they were picked up by several members of the Ku Klux Klan. They were bound, beat and thrown alive into the Mississippi River.

While looking for missing three civil rights workers in July of 1964, searchers stumbled upon the lower half of a young black man's body. Partial remains of another man are found the next day. The men are later identified as Moore & Dee. Oh, and the bodies of the missing civil rights workers were also found in August. They had also been murdered.

Arrested in the Moore & Dee case were two men, James Seale then 29; and Charles Edwards, 31. The FBI reports that both Edwards & Seale admit to picking up the two boys and beat them but left them alive. The FBI turns over their findings to local authorities who promptly drop all charges.

The case was reopened in 2000 because FBI documents state that part of the crime took place in a National Forest; making this a federal crime.

Prosecutors have trouble finding Seale because his son, as intelligent as his father, tells authorities that he is dead. Come to find out, he's alive and well and living a few miles from where the crime was committed.

James Seale was finally arrested on January 24, 2007 and is now standing trial for the kidnap, beating and murder of young Charles Moore & Henry Dee. The case should be concluded in the next few days. I will update the blog when I hear the verdict.

I am thankful for justice, no matter how long in coming.

I want some Cocoa Puffs

I amaze myself that in about 6.5 hours I can knock out a paper to submit..thankfully it's only a draft - but I still think it sucks.
Anyway..it's done and I would really like some Cocoa Puffs...but I don't want to go to the store.

Hey mom...there's not one swear word in this post!

Red Letter Rants - part II

How many times in the past few months have I supposed to have been writing a paper and I choose to blog instead?? Hmmm....

Probably as many times as I've blogged about how much it sucks sometimes to live in community. I think that the "big" churches have it better-you can just go to church, listen, leave and never have to be accountable to anyone at all...but that's not what my reality is at this point; and truthfully as hard as it is, I don't know that I would trade it for anything. Maybe today, but not normally.

It sucks to live in community when people send you stupid emails about stupid things and you end up rolling your eyes at their utter lack of intelligence or grace. Someone I know received an email this week that was so stupid I started swearing at my computer screen when he told me. Instead of uplifting this person or saying "hey I'm praying for you this week..." this email was so incredibly stupid and showed exactly what kind of person this was. I wanted my friend to reply and say "you know, here's a crazy idea...you get your shit together first, then you can email me about anything you want...but until then..." My friend has way more grace than that.

And I hurt for my friend...because I KNOW (beyond all doubt) that we all are trying so desperately to live in the midst of what God is doing and to get others to love Jesus or even give a damn about him and then to get shot down by idiots IN HIS NAME is sometimes really shitty. Hell (if there is one) will be full of Christians who do exactly that...drag someone down in the name of Jesus. That my friends, is the unforgivable sin.

Maybe tomorrow's post will be more fun. Maybe I'll also get my paper done.