Thought For the Week

**SPOILER ALERT**

Here is what I came up with for tomorrow's joint SS program. If you are going to be there, please don't read this yet as I don't want it spoiled for you.

It’s Going to Get Worse Before It Gets Better

When I came home from vacation all that my cat O’Malley wanted to do was be with me. She would sit on my lap, sleep on my bed and even come into the bathroom with me. One morning she woke me up (by purring loudly and lightly taping my face with her paw) at 4:30a because I was sleeping on my side and she needed me to change positions since she wanted to curl up in the crook of my arm. While I very much enjoyed these cuddle times with O’Malley, I couldn’t help but think that something was wrong. She is not usually an affectionate cat and very much enjoys her solitude. One morning I noticed a little buildup in her ears and decided to get her checked out. Oh, the fight she gave me! By the time she was in her carrier I had a nice scratch on my arm and I was getting dirty looks through the mesh lining. But she wasn’t scratching trying to get out. She was resigned to her plight and hunkered down for the ride. She was quiet for the entire 3 block ride.

Another struggle commenced when it was time for her to get out of her carrier. But O’Malley was soon in the arms of a new-to-us Vet Tech on her way to have her claws trimmed and get all of her readings done. When they came back O’Malley was wrapped up in a towel like a kitty burrito. As she handed over my furbaby, the tech told me not to worry: The blood on the towel was hers. O’Malley had muscled through the nail trim (which she won’t even let me do) and her temp taking, but drew the line at having her ears checked and bit the vet tech. Turns out O’Malley was suffering from a very bad ear infection and was in a lot of pain. She hadn’t cried once and would still purr loudly, but her increased affection for me over the course of the previous days was her way of letting me know she was hurting. Don’t we do that with God? We spend more time in prayer and meditation when things aren’t going well for us. We seek God and his comfort when we are hurting. And He is there for us.

But sometimes feeling the security of God is not enough to heal us. Going to the vet didn’t fix O’Malley. We have to fight every day when it is time for her morning ear cleaning and her twice daily ear drops. In order to give her the medicine that her body needs, I have to restrain her and make my own kitty burrito. Sometimes I have to chase her around the house to back her into a corner in order to get her ready for her medicine. When God is trying to direct us on a path that will bring help and healing we often fight against Him. What God is asking not only isn’t fun, it’s distressing and uncomfortable. He may have to chase us like He did Jonah. But there is a purpose.

James 1: 2-4 explains that the goal of trials is a more mature character. The cancer of sin that is so deeply rooted in our hearts is not easy to remove. The chemo, radiation, and medication needed to bring an individual into remission from cancer do so much damage it is often said that the cure is worse than the disease. The cancer spreads and there is a new area of our life that we need to focus on. We get comfortable with our fight against sin and start to slack off on our treatments. A missed devotional here, skipped Prayer meeting there. We think that no one will notice and often they don’t. But then the skipped meetings become the norm. And if no one noticed you were missing, than you might as well just sleep in and skip church too. And no one will care if you spend Friday night cleaning your house and catching up on Facebook games or going out to dinner with friends. But God knows. He cares and He notices that we are missing from His life. And He wants us back whatever the cost. Our sin-cancer has flared up and God is standing by with the Hope of Jesus ready to start again the painful process of removing our desire for sin.

Romans 5:3-5 also tells us that suffering leads to perseverance and hope. Sometimes, like Job, our suffering is not for our betterment. It may be for others to see and know that we understand THEIR suffering. We can be a support to them and show them that God still cares. My friend Pam has struggled for years with breast cancer and was recently told that she was no longer in remission. She now goes to Philly every month for treatments. The special thing about Pam is that she is one of the most upbeat, God-praising people I know. She does not ask God “Why me?” Instead she asks “Who can I witness to? Which other cancer patients and their families and friends can I share the hope and goodness of God with?” Her fight with cancer has helped her share the Hope of Jesus with those who may not be reached by anyone else.

Whether we suffer to mature our characters or to be able to share hope with others, we know that we do not suffer alone. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 reminds us: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”

May “the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort” be with you this Sabbath day.

Eating for One

I like to cook but find cooking for one to be a bit boring. Most nights I throw the food pyramid to the wind and scrounge up whatever I find in the house. Mac & Cheese with canned tomatoes mixed in, check. Cheese quesadilla, check. Granola bar, check. But sometimes, like tonight, I get it right. I boiled up some small red skinned potatoes (skin on) and mashed them with some Earth Balance butter, sour cream, black pepper, dill, and cumin. While the potatoes where boiling away I steamed the head of broccoli I bought in an attempt to make myself eat more healthy. Next up, I pulled a roll of chickettes out of the freezer and fried some up. Here is the end product. I not only got dinner tonight, but two batches of leftovers so I have lunch for the rest of the week.

I Made That

(I posted this at Memphis' 1Thing blog earlier and though it would fit nicely here as well. ) Once a year, usually around Mother's Day, I invite the youth group from my church over to the house to make some crafts. We've made scented lotions, chocolates, soaps, etc. This year we made lip balm. I got the recipe from my herb loving mom who makes some for stocking stuffers at Christmas time. This is a quick and easy project that will help keep your lips protected all summer long.

Honey Lip Balm (makes 16 -18 containers)

4 ounces extra-virgin olive oil

3 ounces grated or shaved beeswax (or beads)

1 ounce honey ½ capsule Vitamin E, 400 IU or 1 ounce Vitamin E oil

A few drops of essential oil (Optional, I used peppermint)

Chopstick or wooden spoon

18 small bead storage jars

1. In a microwave or top of double boiler, melt the beeswax and oil together using a Chopstick or wooden spoon. Do not boil. If the mixture starts to boil remove from heat and allow to cool. (You can remelt it) Once the beeswax and oil are blended, stir in the honey. Then pierce the vitamin E capsule with a needle, squeeze out half of the contents, and stir in. Add in any essential oil you want at this point and stir in. Pour the resulting mixture into clean containers with tops. (I found it cooled very quickly, so pour it immediately before it has a chance to thicken too much.)

2. Let the lip balm sit at room temperature for 48 hours until it arrives at the proper consistency for spreading. You can carry a small container of lip balm around with you during the day, but you may find it keeps better in the refrigerator overnight.

I like to add a couple drops of essential oil for variety. Peppermint is cool and soothing. Lemon or orange taste good. You can add food coloring, but I like mine natural. Use your imagination and make a fun label for your products. Small plastic bead containers with screw-on tops work well for this if you can’t find lip balm holders. They make great gifts!

Company for Dinner

O'Malley has some stomach issues so it is quite common for me to come home to some new piles of chunky cat vomit (due to her gum disease, she doesn't do a good job chewing her dry food). Today I was trying to figure out why it looked so strange. Upon closer inspection, I saw that a whole family of ants had found a new buffet. Since O'Malley made her mess in the middle of the room the ant trail was quite long. Needless to say, I quickly drove to Rite-Aid and picked up a can of Raid for ants. It was quite satifying to see them die on impact.

Potlucking It

One of my favorite dishes to make for potlucks during the spring and summer is my mom's 7 layer salad. The original is served in a large see-through bowl (I use a punch bowl) and has the following layers:

1 head of lettuce (or 2 1/2 romaine hearts) chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 large bag of frozen peas

2 cans of sliced chestnuts

4-5 hard boiled eggs, chopped

1 small bunch of chopped green onions

Spread a large jar of mayonnaise on top (like frosting)

and finally, sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese over the top

You need to wait a couple of hours before eating for the peas to defrost. They keep the mayo cold so you don't need to worry about it staying out. As the peas defrost and people dig into the salad, the mayo thins out and makes an amazing dressing.

Since people seem to enjoy the 7 layer salad I thought it might be worth trying a vegan version. I have several vegan friends and thought that they might like to enjoy all the yummy goodness.

I decided to make it red, white, and green. Here is what I came up with:

1 head of lettuce chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 large bag frozen peas

2 cans sliced chestnuts

2 chopped red peppers

1 container of grape tomatoes - cut in half

Almonnaise* spread over the top like frosting

small batch of green onions, chopped and sprinkled over the top

*I made a double batch of the almonnaise the night before and used apple cider vinegar. I found the vinegar taste to be a bit overpowering and will try reducing the vinegar by one tablespoon. The mixture was very loose at first, but it thickened up nicely overnight in the fridge.

I think that the original is the best, but the vegan salad came out pretty good. It just needs a little tweaking. If anyone has a good vegan mayo recipe, please let me know.

The Day is Dying in the West

While my pastor and his family were on vacation I offered to help out facilitating their Sabbath evening Bible study (5p-7p). I was looking forward to it since I've never really lead out in a guided Bible study like this. Unfortunately, none of the members of the study showed up on either of the two weeks that I was supposed to fill in. I found this disappointing. Each week I waited an hour before I decided it was time to head home. But this week I was feeling a bit restless, so I took to the road and went exploring. I'm not usually one to just drive aimlessly around so it was an adventure for me. I ended up following Macon all the way to Fisherville, TN. What a beautiful little drive. It just so happened that the sun was setting as I was heading back. I don't remember the last time I was able to just sit and watch the sunset. In the winter I'm stuck at work and the rest of the time I'm usually too busy with grocery shopping, watching TV, or any other number of activities. It was the upside down cross pattern in the clouds that grabbed my attention. I'm fairly certain it wasn't an airplane trail due to the angles and thickness of the clouds, but even if it was it was a great end to the Sabbath. Luckily I had my camera in my purse. Here are a couple shots for your viewing pleasure.

Spring Has Sprung

The days are getting longer and the roads are lined with blooms. This afternoon when I went to change the church sign I noticed that there were some beautiful pansies and flowering bushes (I'm really bad with flower names) that were begging to be photographed. Too bad my camera batteries are dead. I'll have to fix that tonight. Here is a sampling of what Memphis is showing off these days. They are from the entrance of the Memphis Botanical Gardens. I snapped them as I was running to the airport after setting up for our job fair. Hopefully this Sunday will be nice and I can spend some time soaking in the Vitamin D.

Refreshing

DISCLAIMER: This post represents my personal opinions, beliefs, and sometimes struggles with the idea that if something is marketed as "Christian" it is safe for me and should be accepted. It is not meant as an attack on anyone who may believe differently. I've noticed that I've become more sensitive to song lyrics--especially lyrics on Christian radio stations. There are two songs that come on K-Love and I am compelled to change the station. Unfortunately for me, these are two of their "top songs." The majority of the Christian believers out there will have no issues with these songs, but since these songs are focused on dead people waiting for us in heaven I can't condone them. I hold firm to the belief that the dead don't go to heaven, but wait in a sleep-like state until the Second Coming (belief number 26). Matthew West's song "Save A Place For Me" is asking for the dead loved one to basically save him a seat in heaven. The second song, Steven Curtis Chapman's "Heaven Is The Face" is a little more subtle. While the majority of the song deals with his memories of his daughter the line about his daughter grabbing his hand to lead him to Jesus is the one that bothers me. It's because these two songs are all over K-Love that it was so refreshing to hear Mark Schultz's song "Love Has Come" about us meeting our lost loved ones at the Second Coming and the joyous reunion we will have with Christ. It is rare to hear a distinctly Adventist position on general media. It is quite refreshing.

Thought for the Day

Thanks, Mom, for showing this to me today. Psalm 86 (New International Version) A prayer of David. 1 Hear, O LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. 2 Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you. 3 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call to you all day long. 4 Bring joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. 5 You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you. 6 Hear my prayer, O LORD; listen to my cry for mercy. 7 In the day of my trouble I will call to you, for you will answer me. 8 Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord; no deeds can compare with yours. 9 All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name. 10 For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God. 11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. 12 I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13 For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave. 14 The arrogant are attacking me, O God; a band of ruthless men seeks my life— men without regard for you. 15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. 16 Turn to me and have mercy on me; grant your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant. 17 Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.

January's Ice Storm

I'm a little late posting these pics. So sue me :)

O'Malley just loves the snow (It's her New England roots). Daly refused to go out.

The ice weighed down this branch. It is usually above the fence.

Sticking Up For Others - A Biblical Calling

This topic is something that I have been thinking about for almost a year now. Here is what I presented this morning for the joint Sabbath School program. “Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite. 'Has the LORD spoken only through Moses?' they asked. 'Hasn't he also spoken through us?' And the LORD heard this.” (Numbers 12:1) A little background: Moses had just appointed 70 elders to help him govern the unruly Israelites. Miriam was not part of that decision and was not considered for the position of elder. Miriam felt neglected, slighted by God. She was a former slave—hated by the Egyptians. She chose to lift up herself by bringing down Moses’ wife. Miriam was the instigator, her name is listed first. She publicly scorned Moses’ wife based on her place of birth, her culture, and her skin color; all of which she had no control over. Miriam also scorned Moses for his decision and brought Aaron along for the ride. But she didn’t stop there; she spoke against the one who gave Moses authority—God. She didn’t feel that He recognized her importance. God likened this to being spit in the face and publicly punished her with temporary leprosy. Miriam truly felt slighted. Those feelings were very real. But her response was wrong. Throwing a temper tantrum and saying “If I’m not happy, you shouldn’t be either” is not the way to go. Why not? Galatians 5:14-15 tells us “The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” We need to find another outlet for our feelings. As Christians we are to “...rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.” (1 Peter 2:1) But Miriam was a stumbling block to Aaron. The term “stumbling block” comes from the Greek word “skandalon”, where the words scandal and scandalous come from. Skandalon literally means a baited trap. This is an intentional act made to trick or trip up someone. Here is a more recent example of someone being slighted. My nephews Dean and Luke like to play Uno. Dean, 7, likes to win so he cheats. Everyone knows that Dean is a cheater. It’s the first thing my brother mentions when anyone new plays with Dean. Luke is almost 5. Luke adores his older brother and looks up to him. He wants to do everything that Dean does. When they play Uno Luke has 3 options: ignore the cheating, cheat back, or voice his displeasure and call Dean on it. Luke has decided that he won’t let Dean get away with cheating. He calls him on it. If Luke cheated back, he would be just as bad as Dean. But what if he just ignored it? He sees it and stays silent. He becomes an accessory to Dean’s cheating. Our legal system says that “An accessory must generally have knowledge that a crime is being, or will be committed. A person with such knowledge may become an accessory by helping or encouraging the criminal in some way, or simply by failing to report the crime to proper authority. The assistance to the criminal may be of any type, including emotional or financial assistance as well as physical assistance or concealment.” (Italics are mine.) The bank robber’s get-away driver is just as guilty of murder as the robber to shot and killed someone. When we refuse to stick up for someone, we become accessories to their sin and commit a sin of omission. James 4:17 tells us “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” This is not the same as sins of ignorance (like Abimelech taking Sarah as a wife in Gen 20:1-7). Abraham committed the sin of omission and dragged Sarah into it by only telling a half truth. Abimelech committed a sin of ignorance because he could not be held responsible for not knowing that Sarah wasn’t married. Why did Abraham lie? He was fearful. What if sticking up for someone or doing the right thing harms you or your image? “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Phil 2:4) It can’t always be about us. We are to hold ourselves to a higher standard. We are to represent Christ on Earth. Matt 18:6 warns “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Matt 5:21-22 takes it a step further: “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca [good for nothing],' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.” That doesn’t bode well for those of us who have sibling rivalry in their closets. Too often we look at each other as a gage for our actions. We tend to fall to the lowest common denominator. If so-and-so can do x, than I can, too. Or if so-and-so leader doesn’t bother doing x, then I don’t need to either. For example, at work I pick up the recycling. I ask that everyone break down their cardboard boxes. My co-workers are pretty good at this. But, if one person doesn’t break down their box then the next 3 people won’t break down theirs either. As Christians we need to keep our focus on God and not those around us. We are told to warn, encourage and be patient with others (I Thes 5:14) not to look to them for what actions are acceptable. If someone was being physically beaten instead of being slandered would the decision to stand up for them be so hard to make? What if it was a child being hurt instead of an adult? How different might the Good Samaritan story be if the hurt Israelite was a hurt child—a victim of abuse by its parents or family? Are we not all children of God? When we see someone hurting we have the responsibility to act. When we see someone hurting someone else through words or actions we have a responsibility to act. Even when the person being hurt isn’t present, we have a responsibility to stand up for them. Is it only the responsibility of leaders or those in authority to stand up for others? No. Sometimes the leaders can be the problem. We only have to look back to the Catholic priest abuse scandal to see leaders taking advantage. “Many shepherds will ruin my vineyard and trample down my field; they will turn my pleasant field into a desolate wasteland.” (Jer 12:10) Jer 23:1-2 goes on to say “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!" declares the LORD. Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: "Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done," declares the LORD.” People often develop a skewed view of God if they were physically or emotionally abused by their parents or someone they considered to be in authority. We are told to keep watch over the flock (Acts 20:28). We know that God does not wish any to perish; therefore all people are His potential flock. Ezekiel 34 gives a warning to the church and its leaders about the need to lift up and encourage others. We should not tear anyone down. “Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?” (Eze 34:18-19) When we tear people down or refuse to stand up for them because it might make us look bad, we are showing a false image of God. We are muddying the waters of Life for those wanting to drink. God knows our hearts. He knows our secret motives and weighs them with our actions and words. When we dwell on negative things, on being slighted or on getting revenge we are more likely to cave in to temptation to act on those feelings and bring others down with us. Therefore we should abide by Paul’s council in Phil 4:8: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Just a Little Late

It's hard to believe that I've only been back home for a little over 2 weeks. It was great to visit with family and just chill for a week. We spent a lot of time on the road--driving to Avon to check out the fully restored Enchanted Village at Jordan's (twice), going to the Natick Jordan's to check out Avatar in their IMAX 3-D (and wait in an obnoxiously long line even though we pre-purchased tickets), heading to Stoneham for church both weekends, meeting up in Saugus for Poppy's pizza birthday (he turned 80!) at Leaning Tower, and fighting Route 2 to go to work for a day at the Boston office. And that doesn't factor in the trips out to eat at Mae's and Jon's Pizza, trips to the ABC, and all the other errands life throws at you. Thankfully, my parents did most of the driving so I was able to finish up a couple of books and this little beauty for my friend. Pink and green were her wedding colors so I thought she would appreciate it (and I was right).

Here are some pics of the crew that went to the Enchanted Village. The first trip was with my cousins, Aunt & Uncle and my grandparents. Round two was with my nephews and brother and sister-in-law. We decided that since Santa wasn't using his chair, we could. Also there was a strange art piece on the ceiling of upside down invisible people in white. It was a bit unnerving at times. I of course had to take a shot of the twins one for E&J.

Poppy didn't seem to mind. The polar bears were animatronic as were all of the "people" at the Enchanted Village sets.

They are such good posers.

Still in love after all these years.

New Favorite

I promise to do a Christmas and New Years wrap up post this weekend (spoiler alert: I as asleep by 11p New Years Eve). But I just had to share a pic of my new favorite shirt. This belated Christmas present came in the mail yesterday. It was designed by my friend L just for me! Are you a little jealous?

Quiet

Things have been fairly quiet on the home front with the exception of a very loud, very late (but fun) night hosting the church Youth for a candy making night on December 12th. I learned a dishcloth pattern and have made a set for each of my grandmothers for Christmas. Nana gets the yellow and Nanny's is a light blue to go with her blueberry themed kitchen. I finished the last one yesterday. Now I'm focusing on a scarf or two and finishing up my shawl.

My adult Sabbath School programs for the month have gone well. I'm happy to say that at least one person each week makes a point to say that they enjoyed the program and got something out of it. That is what I work towards. I get anywhere from 10-30 people for the 9:30-9:45a program. Since there was some resistance to the idea of doing a sanctuary program before breaking out for the lesson, I'm pleased with the turnout. I try to make the programs unique and put my spin on ideas when I can. And I do love visual aids and handouts.

On December 5th I talked about family traditions and brought in some Shabbat candles and a Challah recipe so that anyone who wanted to start a new Friday night tradition could. (As a result of my research, I've actually started lighting two Shabbat candles and say a short prayer when I get home from work on Friday nights--I leave just before sunset, so it's already Sabbath when I get home--to set the mood for Sabbath.)

The next week I spoke about the commercialism of Christmas and how we should focus on family and quality time instead of presents and money and shopping. I handed out the following Christmas Pledge: “Believing in the true spirit of Christmas, I commit myself to: Remember those who truly need my gifts. Express my love in more direct ways than gifts. Examine my holiday activities in light of my deepest values. Be a peacemaker within my circle of family and friends. Rededicate myself to spiritual growth.” --Unplug the Christmas Machine by William Morrow

Last week I dealt with our responsibility to show compassion and tangible care to those in need. My theme was based on James 1:27 and Ezekiel 34:8 and dealt mostly with shut-ins, sick, aged, widow(er)s, and single parent families. I brought some blank cards so that those who wanted to could write a short note of encouragement to someone who may be feeling forgotten.

I'm thankful to have the next two weeks off to recharge and think of some more topics. I'm hoping to find some inspiration from my parents' church and the antics of my nephews.

Done!

This is it. My final post for November. I made my goal of 30 posts in the 30 days of November. Now I can go to bed each night and not try to stay awake to post. I'm not sure what December holds (except a trip to the auto shop to possibly get a new alternator), but I do plan on putting up my nativity tomorrow. I'm not doing a tree this year since I won't be around for Christmas.

A Stitch in Time

I spent a good part of the day learning a new knitting style: intarsia knitting. There were about eleven of us at Yarniverse. Our teacher was an amazingly patient woman named Charlotte who used to work for Vogue Knitting Magazine. She wasn't fond of my loop cast on (as it can result in very loose row) and showed me a knitting cast on. It took a couple of tries but I finally got it. I only got about two-thirds of the way through the first group of colors before class ended. But once I got home I was able to take what I learned and add on the final 3 colors. Here is what the completed project is supposed to look like: And here is what I've done so far. I'm not sure how long it's going to take, but I hope it will go quickly since it's on size 15 needles. The finished shawl is supposed to be 60". (I'm just over ten percent done with 7" so far.) I don't know if I'll be able to give this one away.

Day of Rest

This morning I woke up early and was able to take my time getting ready. (As this is not usually the case since the snooze button and I are really close, it was a treat.) This set the tone for the day. I was able to fit in my devotion book reading and some Bible reading while eating breakfast this morning. For the joint Sabbath School I gave the history of the hymn "Now Thank We All Our God" and then opened it up for people to share their sentiments of thanks. I was grateful to see that most everyone had something to share. There were only two kids that showed up for Earliteens and they offered to join with the small Junior class so that I could hit up the adult lesson. What a nice change. After church I went over to check in on Ti-Ti who I am cat sitting. We had our Sabbath dinner together then snuggled while I worked on my circular knitting project for Christmas and watched Dave Salmoni and his work with the African Lions. I think Ti-Ti was into the show as she made sure she could see the TV when she was balled up in my lap. I rather enjoy hanging out with Ti-Ti as she is much more affectionate than either of my girls. There was one strange thing that happened both last week and this. Both weeks, right before going in to the sanctuary for the joint Sabbath school I had someone (a different person each week) exclaim, "I didn't think you'd be here today." You would think the fact that my name was in the bulletin both weeks for announcements should have been a clue. I know that I usually go away for Thanksgiving, but I'm always here the Sabbath before Thanksgiving. And I told anyone who asked that I wasn't going out of town this year for Thanksgiving. I'm not sure what to make of the fact that people think I would bail or not get coverage for those tasks I'm responsible for. I take my commitments and responsibilities very seriously. The only time that I've had to miss Sabbath school was when I was sitting in Urgent Care and even then I made it to church. Having people flake on their responsibilities is one of my pet peeves. I hope that I would never do anything so selfish, inconsiderate and rude. It borders on insulting that some think I would do such a thing.

I Did It

After a couple of weeks of debating, I decided it was time to dye my hair. It's been about three years since I last colored my hair. I'm not ready to commit to a permanent color, so I went with a 28 wash one. I couldn't find the right shade of dark reddish auburn that I have used in the past (or as Nanny calls it "Street Walker Red"), so I went with the next best thing: Midnight. I had forgotten how nice freshly dyed hair feels. I'm thinking this color will go over better than the pink spray in I sported back in October for a couple days. Then again, my mom told me that she thinks black is in poor taste and just looks fake. I disagree since I have dark eyebrows and brown eyes. Wonder if I'll miss my greys?

Feasting

Since I had a solo Thanksgiving I decided a taste test was in order. The two vegan loaves up for the challenge were the Field Roast Grain Meat Co.'s celebration roast and the Quorn Turk'y roast. Here they are in all of their packaged glory.

I decided to bake the Quorn loaf and to cut a couple of slices of the Field Roast to heat on the stove top. The Quorn loaf reminded me of a roll of chickettes when I placed it in the oven. It browned up a little and cut easily once the protective film was removed. (You are supposed to cook it with the film on. I only got a small fingertip burn taking it off.) Honestly, I was not fond of the taste or texture of the Turk'y loaf at all. I could barely eat one slice when it was drowning in mushroom gravy. You may be surprised to know that the reason I disliked it was because the taste and texture reminded me too much of meat. I'm going to see if my former meat eating friends would like the rest of it. (I'm a vegetarian since birth and really dislike the texture of meat. I want my fake meat to taste fake! It should be it's own dish.)

The Field Roast was stuffed with a sausage-style mixture. This was more flavorful than the Quorn loaf. But again, I found it tasted and had a texture a bit too much like meat. I was able to get through one and a half slices with mushroom gravy; two full slices was a bit much. I will keep the leftovers and see if they work in a sandwich tomorrow.. I'm not sure that I would buy it again for myself, but could deal with it if someone had bought it to serve at a dinner I went to.

The highlight of the meal was my mashed sweet potatoes (just a little salt & butter) and the Martinelli's. I ended up not making the stuffing as I didn't notice until I got it home that it listed cooked chicken and chicken stock in the ingredients.

So the results are in: Quorn Turk'y Roast - I don't think you could pay me to eat it again. Field Roast Celebration Roast - It's ok and I could eat it again, but it's not something I would rush out to buy again. Cream Cheese Patties - I should've just bit the bullet and made a batch; by far the best Thanksgiving entree out there.

To the Nines

After I finished Thanksgiving dinner I spent the rest of the day watching the James Bond movie marathon on TV and finishing up scarf #9. I decided not to use the whole skein and make it a bit on the shorter side because I really wanted to be finished before heading to my knitting class on Sunday. The pattern is the American Moss Stitch.