Despereaux

For the past three years, I've kept a list of the books I've read over that year.  My third and newest list is nearing completion!  So far in 2012 I've read forty-four books, mostly children's books; I'm not sure if I will be able to squeeze a forty-fifth book in or not!  (Even if I am able to, the forty-fifth will definitely not be Les Miserables, haha!)

In November I subbed for a friend at one of the local junior high schools.  The students were taking tests all day, so I picked up a book that I heard about but never read, The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo, a Newbery Medal winner.  The main character is a tiny, noble mouse named Despereaux who is very different from his family.  He meets the human princess who lives in the castle and talks to her and even lets her pet his soft, huge ears.  This is a capital offense, so Despereaux is sent to the dungeon where he meets other characters, both good and bad.  Despereaux escapes and attempts to save the princess, his brave little heart enduring many setbacks.  DiCamillo's writing style bothered me at points, but the story she told made up for the weird references to the reader. ("Reader, do you know what this means?  Maybe you should look it up in the dictionary to make sure!" "Reader, has this ever happened to you?" "Reader" "Reader" "Reader" you get the point...)  I read while students were taking tests, during my free period, and through lunch.  At one point a little seventh grader asked if he could have the book; apparently he had been reading it on an other day and wanted it back!  He put it under his desk to read after his test; I thought about asking for it back, but resisted. ;)  

Anyway, Despereaux didn't take long to read.  I usually wait about ten minutes after the last bell rings before I try to leave a school; traffic can be crazy, especially with the junior highs, a few of which are situated in neighborhoods with poor traffic flow.  I was sitting at the teacher's desk, trying to take in the flow of words as fast as possible, when I realized that I couldn't do it: I had to leave the book behind.

Nooooooooo!!!

I drove across town, went to a few grocery stores, went to church for our bulletins, picked up Amos from work, and resisted the urge to stop at the library to read the last thirty pages of the book.  We got home, and I set off right away for the library around the corner, determined to find Despereaux before the library closed.  No luck.  There were several copies at the two libraries across town, but none at ours!

Nooooooooo!!!

The next day Amos was going to a men's dinner at church, and I was going to a ladies' dinner at a friend's house.  I left Amos to be picked up by one of our elders, who lives around the corner, and headed off to the library across town.  I selected a nice copy of the book, checked it out, and headed to my friend's house.  I pulled into a parking lot across the street from her complex to finish the book, turning up about five minutes late for the dinner.  I sat in my car and finished the epic story about the brave mouse, the kind princess, some delicious soup, a mistreated girl, a good-and-bad rat, the ridiculous king, an unfair mouse council, the kind keeper of the dungeon, and a red tablecloth.  It was lovely.

"Mig, as you might have guessed, did not get to be a princess.

But her father, to atone for what he had done,

treated her like one for the rest of his days."

"Friendship"

I think my friend Heather has a point when she says one reason she deleted Facebook was because "...some things people post on Facebook rile me up unnecessarily and cause me to judge them in ways I shouldn't."  Well, something on Facebook irritated me enough to write a post about it, though I've thought about this  for quite some time.

Anyway, this person had a quote from Ayn Rand, libertarian and feminist extraordinaire, about friendship.  Or, "friendship," as I would call it.  If you know a bit about Ayn Rand (I read part of an article about her and her philosophy once), you know that she thought that living for self was the ultimate goal in life.  She believed in a society run with no commitments and no restrictions on personal liberty and the personal pursuit of happiness.  Here is her quote about "friendship."

"I shall choose friends among men, but neither slaves nor masters.  And I shall choose only such as please me, and them I shall love and respect, but neither command nor obey.  And we shall join our hands when we wish, or walk alone when we so desire."

"And I shall choose only such as please me, and them I shall love and respect..."  Is this true friendship?  I've seen quotes around the internet about "Choose only those friends who build you up and make you a better person.  If they take too much out of you, ditch 'em."  (I'm talking here about friends who drag you down emotionally and relationally simply by their personality or life choices, not people who are openly hostile and manipulative, who try to use you rather than truly befriend you.)  Well, if the world followed the philosophy of Ayn Rand and random internet quotes, I don't suppose I would be friends with quite a few people!  My parents chose to befriend my brothers and sisters and I as we were growing up, not because we would make my parents better people, but because they loved us, had a commitment to us, and wanted us to be better people.  My ARA in college chose to befriend me as an annoying freshman not because I would make her a better person, but because she cared about me.  My roommate Katharyn chose to befriend me not because I irritated her and tickled her and teased her and jumped out of closets at her, but because she cared about me.  When I came to care more about her than about myself, we got along a lot better.  Amos chose to befriend me and continues to befriend me even when I hurt him.  I told him one time, "I don't want you to have to love the ugly parts of me," to which he replied, "but that really isn't love, is it?"

One of my best friends is different from me in almost every way.  I told her once that the only thing we have in common is our blue eyes, haha!  There have been times when it would have been easier on me to withdraw myself, to cease to reach out to her, to give her the cold shoulder, to let her wander off and out of my life.  But I didn't.  Why?  Because I thought that that wasn't loving; because I thought that perhaps she needed a friend that didn't give up on her; because I thought maybe I could influence her for good, even if she didn't always listen to me.

Are these relationships just that, relationships, not friendships?  Why must friendships only benefit me?  Why not make friends to benefit others?  Why only seek out like-minded people to be friends with?  Why avoid the rough edges?  What is the difference between love and friendship?

Indifference, rejection, lack of commitment, self-interest.  Is this how we are to respond when a friend, who needs help, is costing us more than we want to pay?  That's not how God responded.  God looked at Israel and saw a pitiful, whiny, unfaithful people, and He loved them.  God saw Peter, His chosen Church founder, who denied him, who made mistakes, who was embarrassing, and He loved him.  God saw me, a selfish introvert who would rather not reach out to others, who would rather love her husband and no one else, who would rather not learn to be patient with people, and He loved me.  Can't I learn to love others, too, even more, to befriend others who often don't give me what I want, who don't always show love in return, who sometimes irritate me, who cause me stress, who misunderstand and misinterpret me on occasion?

Friendship - not just love, but friendship -  is an investment, even when you don't know if you'll get any worthwhile returns.  And that is worth much more than living for the friendship of self.

Size Large

When I am freezing or when I get a cold, I pull out my size large, dark grey sweatshirt from my first official job, Sunshine Day Care.  I worked at Sunshine for two semesters during my freshman year of college.  My boss, a Christian guy, was weird.  He didn't let his Sunshine workers pick out size small work shirts at the corporate office.  Presumably this was to stop his employees from choosing too-small shirts when they really needed a larger size.  Thus I ended up with several too big, size medium t-shirts, which looked ridiculous on me, not to mention the fact that a few were emblazoned with huge, yellow suns wearing shades.  My boss' rule really didn't make sense when I saw my coworkers, who should have worn size large, wearing their tight size mediums, the same size as mine; what was the point of the rule again?  :P

Any way, our boss also got us site sweatshirts when the spring semester rolled around.  I guess he just upped the t-shirt sizes from each of us when he ordered the sweatshirts.  Thus I have a size large sweatshirt to go with my size extra-small self.  I can't say that I appreciated it seven years ago, but I sure appreciate it now in the cold, even though I look ridiculous.  I wonder if I could stuff Amos in here, too?! :)

Young, Hugo, Lewis, and Adams

I like this song by Adam Young, aka Owl City, for the Disney movie Wreck It Ralph.  The music video is kind of weird/cheesy, but I like the song.

I love books.  I'm about 200 pages into Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, and I have 1,060ish pages to go!  I'm reading it for a few reasons.
1. A new theatrical version is coming out in a few weeks.
2. Several of my friends have seen a play version of the story and/or love the music.
3. The discipline of reading a long loooooooooooooong book is good for me as a reader and as a person.
4. I want to be able to say that I've read the unabridged version. ;)

I'm almost done with Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C.S. Lewis.  I like it a lot.  Here is one quote that really stuck out to me.

"What I like about experience is that it is such an honest thing.  You may take any number of wrong turnings; but keep your eyes open and you will not be allowed to go very far before the warning signs appear.  You may have deceived yourself, but experience is not trying to deceive you.  The universe rings true wherever you fairly test it."

This reminds me of a quote from one of my teacher ed professors.  Dr. Adams never married, even though she wanted to.  She is now set to retire this spring, and Master's will have a hard time replacing her.  She taught a few seminar and credential classes as well as the intense-but-fun class known as Children's Lit.  She has a hundreds of children's books in her office. *sigh*

One year Dr. Adams spoke in a women's chapel about...something?  I think it was about trusting God with your life; I'm not sure.  Though I can't remember the exact topic, I do remember one exact sentence.

"God isn't going to let you unknowingly ruin your life."

This is very encouraging, and I think it goes along with C.S. Lewis' quote.  God will not let me unknowingly ruin my life.  He is a loving God, so He will use circumstances, people, His Word, and my conscience to show me the right way to go.  Even when I am confused, God is on my side.  He won't let me accidentally ruin my future.

Hell in the sanctified imagination

*Disclaimer: I know that people don't like to think or talk about hell, and I'm not sure that I do, either.  However, I am a Christian and thus believe in a literal hell.  I don't believe in hell because I want revenge on anyone, and I certainly don't believe that I have any responsibility for who goes to hell (referring to the common question, "if I don't believe in Jesus, do you believe I will go to hell?"  Well, yes, but it's not MY condemnation, it's your own for not accepting Christ, and it's what the Bible says.  "Don't shoot the messenger.")

At one of our Thursday Bible study meetings, our Bible study leader asked us, "What do you think hell is like?"  A few people gave some answers, then Jeff asked Amos what he thought.  Here's a paraphrase of Amos' response.  It is not meant to be taken as biblical fact but rather as Amos' own view of what hell could be like.

"I don't think hell is like a nightmare, like many people think [dark, scary, monster-filled, etc.].  I think it is more like finally understanding that God is God, and being eaten up by that knowledge for eternity.  You finally understand and believe what God has done for you  on the cross, and you are eaten up by the fact that God loves you and doesn't want you in hell, but that His perfect justice will not allow Him to take you out of hell.  You live in eternity with the knowledge of both the truth and your rejection."

How sad!  How horrifying.

A Polling Story

My parents love to vote, and they effectively instilled that love in their first four children and are currently working on the next four.

I love to vote, too.  I get so excited when I get to sign my name, take my ballot, mark little dots with a special pen, and submit my vote.  I almost tear up, just because I am so happy to participate in this great process known as democracy (I know, I need help).

When I was younger, my parents took my brothers and me to the polling places.  In the weeks leading up to the elections, Mom and Dad discussed the politicians, propositions, and measures, marking their choices carefully in their voting guides.  Or at least so I thought.  One year Dad didn't mark up his guide, so he came out of his little, corrugated plastic booth to ask Mom, who was voting in her own booth, which person or proposition he was supposed to choose.  Mom started to show him her choices when a poll worker popped out of nowhere and said firmly, "Sir, you can't do that.  Go back to your booth!"

Dad was caught off guard by her sudden appearance, so he blinked quickly, got out an apology, and hopped back in.  I don't know if he ever did pick the right candidate.

The Christian and the Homosexual

The Bible says that homosexuality is wrong (see Romans 1).  As Christians, we need to know how to respond to a culture that is increasingly accepting of homosexuality, even when there aren't that many actual homosexual individuals in the United States (this statistic was brought to my attention by Al Mohler in one of his Briefings).

One resource that I found very helpful was an interview conducted by Tim Challies and David Murray.  The interviewee was Rosaria Butterfield, an ex-lesbian who is now a conservative, Christian, homeschool-mom to four children adopted from the foster care system (yea!); talk about a one-eighty.  You would think that Rosaria would give the same pat answers and suggestions that you always hear, but I was surprised and challenged as I listened to her testimony and her words of advice.  She also is very eloquent, which I appreciate. :)  You can listen to the interview here.

Here's a quote from the interview that doesn't apply just to the problem of homosexuality; I found it very thought-provoking.

"True believers can be beaten down by sin faster and more furiously than sanctification can buoy them up."

What a call to be both on our toes and on our knees!

Self-Crusting Quiche

I don't remember what I was searching for when I found this recipe idea, but I'm sure glad I found it!  I guess self-crusting quiche is a New Zealand thing (or so the recipes I found seemed to indicate.  It's basically an egg-bake-type-thing with lots of good stuff in it and no time-consuming crust. ;)  Amos and I make this about once a week.  We cook it in a glass pie dish, cut it into sixths, and wahh-laaah! we have breakfast for three days. :)  It stores well in the fridge and heats up nicely in the microwave.

Self-Crusting Quiche 

3 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 cup grated cheese
Various spices, salt, and pepper
1/2 cup Bisquik or other generic baking mix
1/2-1 1/2 cups vegetables and other add-ins
Additional cheese for the top, if you like a lot of cheese 

Mix everything together well in any order in a medium-large mixing bowl.
Pour into greased pie pan or 8x8 baking dish.
Cook 30-35 minutes at 385 degrees or until set.

I've changed this recipe every time I've made it!  Some of my ideas are listed below, with an asterisk next to our favorites.

Adaptations
*3/4 cup mixture of plain yogurt and milk in any proportions
*Addition of 1/8 cup wheat germ (you don't taste it, it's just good for you)
Addition of 1/8 cup protein powder (whey protein)
Pan-fried potatoes added to the pan before pouring in the egg mixture

Add-ins that we've liked
Munster cheese
*Pepper jack cheese
Cilantro
Basil
*Raw onions
*Raw bell peppers
*Salami
Turkey lunch meat
*Fresh corn from boiled corn on the cob
Cooked asparagus
Cooked spinach

Spices
*Garlic powder
Sage
*Cayenne pepper
Cumin

Plethora

My poor little blog seems to be forgotten quite regularly.  Oh dear.

Here's an interesting article by Al Mohler about the changing religious demographics of the United States.

Recent cooking adventures?  Oatmeal spice cake with honey-cream cheese frosting, pulled pork in the crock pot, and soon, hopefully, chicken spaghetti from Pioneer Woman (minus the overly-processed cream of whatever soups)!

I finished Atheism Remix by Al Mohler on Sunday, and am still in the middle of Mark Twain's European adventure, A Tramp Abroad.  I'm also reading The Magician's Book: A Skeptic's Adventures in Narnia by Laura Miller.  This book is very interesting, but I don't agree with a lot of what she says.  However, Miller does exhibit some good insight:

"The sort of experience that makes for a good story is seldom a comfy one. 
'Adventure,' then, is what might otherwise be called a hardship if it were attempted in a different spirit.  Turning a difficult task or a perilous journey into an adventure is largely a matter of telling yourself the right story about it...This is surely the oldest form of the many tasks that stories are called upon to perform." pg. 57

"[Lewis] firmly believe that sometimes war was necessary.  Religion explains the why -- sometimes we must be willing to sacrifice ourselves for a greater good -- but stories show us how.  Stories are what make heroes.  You can only become a hero by participating in a story, and stories bestow meaning on what might otherwise look like raw suffereing and waste." pg. 59

I've had two interviews in the last two days for three different positions, but I didn't get the first and if offered the second or third, I will decline them.  There are some things that specific students need that I am just not willing to help with.  I worked two days last week and am working five days this week, and with all the busyness of work and home and church and projects and cleaning and running errands and needing to fix the car, I can't help thinking that maybe I shouldn't try for a full-time job. :P  We shall see...

Quick trip

It's Wednesday!  It doesn't seem like Wednesday, but maybe that's because my Monday and Tuesday were taken up by flights and family visits.  I flew to NorCal on Monday morning (way too early) and flew back on Tuesday afternoon.  My mom had a coupon for a facial treatment that wouldn't work for her, so she gave it to me.  Even though I'm twenty-six, I still have acne that I'm trying to get rid of. :P

Here are some stories from the weekend...

Me: "Garret, do you want a cookie?  Amos made them.  They're peanut butter oatmeal with white and regular chocolate chips."
Garret: "No, I'm on a diet."
--I walk over with the open cookie bag--
Me: "Are you sure?  They're really good."
--Garret eyes the cookies--
Garret, wistfully: "Are they soft?"
Me: "Yep."
Garret: "Okay."


Me: "I wonder if Ethan and Andrew will be color blind." [Ross is color blind.]
Ross: "Audra is worried about losing her sense of smell."
--Ross tells us a story about Audra's dad and his nearly-nonexistent sense of smell--
*A minute later*
Ross: "Audra is worried about losing her sense of smell."
Me: "Are you worried about losing your sense of remembrance?!  You just told us that!"


Luke: "Gio might have a Matchbox car that's worth three dollars!"
Ross: "Bring me the car; let me see the price book."
--Takes the car, looks in the book--
Ross: "Yeah, this is the right one.  I think the car has some syrup on it, though.  You take it to the Antiques Roadshow, and they taste it, 'Mmmmmm, maple!'"


Scott told me about his police pursuit and how he couldn't get this seatbelt on because the road was so bumpy that the belt kept locking in his hand!  He ate three of Amos' cookies.


Mom: "Alistair Begg isn't really old, unless you think I'm really old!"
Brenda: "Mo-ther!!  You are not old!  You have at least fifty years left to go!
Mom, teasing: "I just want to live old enough to be a burden to my children."
Alexis: "What's a burgen?"


All in all, it was a very nice two days being able to see everyone. :)

Around the web 3

Here are some more links to enjoy!

via Tim Challies "Just Disconnect" by Carl Trueman
I really liked this article and then felt guilty that I had just posted on Facebook that I was drinking tea and browsing Pinterest.

The purpose of mist. by Heather Surls
My friend Heather went for a walk early one morning, and here are her thoughts.

via my friend Elizabeth Confessions of a Young Widow: The Little Things I Miss About Being Married by Sabrina Beasley
This was written by a friend of my friend Elizabeth.  I thought it was funny that after I read this article, Amos came home and was doing something "juvenile," so I got to tease him about it.  He's pretty great! :)

Chicken Parmigiana from The Pioneer Woman
I always thought that breaded chicken had to be baked, but it doesn't!  I made my own sauce but used this method for cooking the chicken. So good.
As a side note, Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, is hilarious.  I love reading her recipes because she is a nut!

A favorite picture from Bangalore

Informed

I don't know about yours, but my Facebook page is getting overwhelmed with news.  My brother Ross posts and likes pictures having to do with the presidential election.  Red-highlighted maps show American embassies under siege in the Middle East.  Teachers are striking in Chicago.  The new iPhone 5 came out today? yesterday? who cares who knows?  Iran and Israel are still "discussing" a nuclear attack.  Companies, universities, and other institutions are protesting the federal mandate to provide insurance to cover abortion costs.  New York is outlawing the sale of sugary beverages in containers larger than sixteen ounces.

Besides voting in November and choosing not to get an iPhone, I don't think I can do much to fix these world problems.  It would be easier simply to ignore all of the noise and pay attention to inane tv shows instead, but Amos and I don't have a tv. ;) haha!  No, I don't want to watch tv to escape from the world, and I'm glad we don't have a tv.  But how can I still get some news without being over whelmed with pages and pages of Google News articles?

I'm glad you asked.  Though I've read Al Mohler's articles for a while, I listened to his daily newscast for the first time yesterday.  Al Mohler talks about the current news and what it all means from a Christian worldview.  Each podcast is about ten-fifteen minutes long and seems to highlight only the headline news from the day.  If you want to join me, you can listen to The Briefing here.

Have a good time staying informed!