Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Daily 5 - Day 244

Today's Daily 5:
  1. Grandma was out for a while when I got home, and I took advantage of it and took over the kitchen, cooking for the rest of the week.  I forgot how much I love the feeling of cooking, and even washing dishes and cleaning up.  The normalcy of doing those tasks without feeling watched or hen-pecked tonight was beautiful.
  2. I made Indian Butter Chicken (from a paste mix - but so tasty) and Italian pork chops with sweet baby bell peppers, and roasted potatoes.  And, there's enough for two meals of Butter Chicken, and three more pork chops.  Basically I've solved my "I haven't been cooking so I've been eating crap" problem for the rest of the week in one fell swoop.
  3. A smooth trip to the registry office today.  Only one step left (and one repair by my dad) and I'll be the owner of a car that can legally be on the roads.
  4. Tax return cheque came in the mail.  Hooray for money back from the government!
  5. Trading text messages with a dear friend late this afternoon while I commuted home, and she waited in the airport to catch a flight overseas for a few weeks.  It was nice to share those moments with her, and assure her I was praying for some stuff that came up as she waited for her flight.
  6. Went to mom and dad's after work to pick up my mail, and there was a card and package waiting from the same dear friend.  It's great to get special mail sometimes.
  7. After all that cooking, I cleaned up, got ready for tomorrow, and crawled into bed.  It's been great to spend an evening just mellowly watching a dvd and catching up on a few emails.
  8. Did I mention that not only did I cook, but I did it in quite possibly the worst equipped kitchen ever?  I did all of that cooking without most of the basic tools and pans I would use for those tasks.  I couldn't even find a frying pan.  I was really proud of the way the food turned out given the limitations in my cooking supplies.
  9. Chocolate
  10. Going to bed earlyish tonight.  Still trying to recover.

All over thoughts

I know I promised an update from the weekend away for work, so let me start there:

I drove (well, actually, Mom drove, and I was a passenger) through a blizzard to make it to the city the conference was being held in.  The weather wreaked havoc all weekend.  We were very excited that Carolyn Arends was to be providing the entertainment for our Friday night banquet, but her flights were affected by the weather too.  So, maybe next year.  We had a banquet (very good) with a program (also good) but no entertainment.  No big deal.  Little hitches with the hotel can also be partially attributed to weather.  I worked a 14 hour day on Friday and probably a 10 hour day (once you add the drive home in) on Saturday.  But I'm really pleased with how things went, barring the little unavoidable hitches.

~~~

Last night did not hold any stupid little dog incidents.  I have, however, concluded that old people are strange.  Rather than closing her bedroom door to keep the dog in, grandma has decided that the best plan of action would be to put something across her door.  Why she doesn't close it, I'll never understand, but hey, as long as there are no more incidents involving a little black dog pouncing on me and scaring me awake from a dead sleep, I'm okay with it.

I did actually sleep last night, and just now was thinking about how I shouldn't complain that I feel tired, since I had a rare nearly 5-6 total hours of sleep, sans nightmares.

And then I remembered that one night doesn't make up for years of poor sleeping.

And that I worked like a crazy person for the last couple weeks, including through an evening and a weekend day that I usually have off, and maybe I'm entitled to be a little bit drained.

And I am drained.  So tired, in fact, that I'm having that "I just want to sit here and cry" feeling.

I'm thinking, too, about a number of prayer requests.

About 2 different friends, one old and one new, whose mother's have been diagnosed in recent months with rare cancers.

I'm pondering, still, the intense juxtaposition of life and death that I experienced on Sunday afternoon.

I'm praying for a very dear friend who travels today to a place on the other side of the world where we shared some intense experiences together a few years back.  Praying for her trip, and her time in this place, and for the others who shared those very shaping experiences with us as well.

And I'm thinking about the random practical things, like the fact that I need to leave the office early today to go to the auto registry and take care of registering the car I recently bought.  And trying to figure out when I can get said car inspected, before the insurance company deadline, because of it's elderly age.  And remembering that I need to pick up mail from my mom and dad's tonight, and also make a stop at a bank today or tomorrow to deposit some cheques.  About the fact that I need to remember to bring some breakfast foods to work with me again to replenish my stash, and about how I could really use a bright sunny day instead of this dreary, cold, snowy weather, just to perk me up.

And that, my friends, is the random conglomeration of things filling my brain just in this moment.

What Kind of Jeans are You?

I thought that this one was funny.  And, my current definition of the perfect jean cut is Gap's Curvy Flare.


You Are Flares




You are a true free spirit, and you enjoy playing with fashion. Your look tends to be eclectic.

You tend to be a bit rebellious. You're more likely to dress for yourself than dress for the occasion.

You are both peaceful and jovial. There is a happy calm that surrounds everything you do.

You are broad minded, well read, and well traveled. You are open to anything that comes your way.

Holy

A friend of mine posted this on facebook last night.  I needed the reminder of a Holy God who does miracles.  I could use a few of those this week, and in coming weeks. I'd like to see some for others I care deeply about too.  In any case, the song moved me deeply as I watched, and I wanted to share.