Cheapskate Innovation

Muen-dog Omelette
- 1 egg
- 1 slice of Muenster cheese
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 grilled, cold hotdog

Using a cheese grater, shred the hotdog and saute it in a small frying pan on medium for five minutes with the olive oil. Whip the egg and pour it into the pan to create an even layer of egg and shredded hot dog. When the egg mixture is ready, place the slice of cheese on one half of the pan and fold, making an omelette. Voila!

Beautiful Blueberry Breakfast
- 1 Bagel Thin
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- cream cheese

Toast the bagel, spread with cream cheese, and arrange blueberries on one half of the bagel. Place other half of bagel on top, prepare yourself for deliciousness.

Peanut Butter Fried Rice (recipe courtesy of Jennifer Jacquet)
- 1 large takeout container of white rice
- 1/3 cup peanut butter
- 3 teaspoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Mix peanut butter, soy sauce and oil in a frying pan to melt. Add rice and stir until all is coated. Could also add in chopped peanuts, green onions and cooked chicken!

Donne Undone

Batter my heart, three person'd God; for, you

As yet but knock, breathe, shine and seek to mend;

That I may rise, and stand, overthrow me, and bend

Your force, to break, blow, burn and make me new.

I, like a usurpt town, to another due,

Labour to admit you, but Oh, to no end,

Reason, your viceroy in me, I should defend,

But is captive, and proves weak or untrue.

Yet dearly I love you, and would be loved fain,

But am betrothed unto your enemy:

Divorce me, untie or break that know again;

Take me to you, imprison me, for I 

Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,

Nor ever chast, except you ravish me.

- John Donne, Holy Sonnet 74. "Batter my heart" (update language mine)


Donne was a master of the extended metaphor (although English teachers would tell you they're called metaphysical conceits) and wove together seemingly unrelated topics to construct a vibrant image.

Did you catch that he compared his heart to a city under the devil's rule ("I, like a usurpt town, to another due"), and that Donne is begging God to come into his heart ("I...Labour to admit you, but Oh, to no end"). Maybe you noticed that Donne sees himself as married to the devil ("...betrothed unto your enemy:") and is begging God is sever that relationship ("Divorce me, untie, or break that knot again:"). Does it surprise you that Donne begs for God to pull him into himself, to ravish, enthrall, imprison him? Are you shocked at Donne's brutal, warlike tone? Are you offended?

Why?

Some people are offended by a poem of such passion for God, such angst and rawness of heart, or misunderstand the rawness of emotion as sacrilegious towards a pure God. I envy Donne's ability to craft an image out such incongruent pieces, and I envy his openness of heart that allowed him to release that passion. I don't think God minds it at all when we burst open with love and passion for him. In the last lines, Donne is overwhelmed with his brokenness and filth and begs God to clean him up and bring him back to himself. It's a praise, a lament and a salvation story all in one.

Wouldn't it be worse if Christians were always socially appropriate and dutiful, always proper and politically correct? When did it become such an outrage to be fiery, outspoken people of such love and passion that offends rather than sits back in silence? Do you think the Apostle Paul was a wallflower, or that Peter was known as the one who always said the right thing?

Every time I think I'm doing alright, some other deficiency gapes back at me, or some rough spot rasps out to be filed down. Some days I ride too high, and once I've fallen off and see how far I've wandered, I ache for God to take back my heart, to be divorced from the power that rules the self. But it's not just God that makes this happen - I have to move, too. It's the both of us working out salvation, it's God who readies my hands for action and my heart for love.

I'm still a work in progress (but aren't we all?). I wish I could write as fluidly as Donne, with his vivid images and gripping style, but I'm just not there yet. I wish I could be as outspoken about my faith and convictions as Donne, but then again, God is still working all that out in me, and that part's not finished yet.

I'm not Donne yet, because I'm not done yet.

Chopsticks

I'm pretty sure God eats with chopsticks, which is to say...

one bite at a time.

No more than needed for a mouthful, enough to satisfy, no less than what is required. Spoons overflow, forks shovel , knives disintegrate, but chopsticks hold just the right size piece, filling our mouth without making us gasp for air around an over-large bite. He knows that anyone can choke on too much of a good thing.

~~~~~~

I'm pretty sure God gives us grace with chopsticks, which is to say...

one day at a time.

No more than we need for the day, enough to strengthen, sustain and grow, never less than what we require. God knows we could hoard his grace, choking on too much of a good thing, so he gives us enough for one day at a time, always reminding us he's got plenty more for tomorrow.

~~~~~~

Thank God for chopsticks.

Harry and the Potters

1.) There is a band playing in Kansas City called Harry and the Potters. It is two brothers who dress up in wizard's robes and sing their own songs, like "Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock", "Save Ginny Weasley from Dean Thomas" and "Felix Felicis (Eighth Clockwise Stir Mix)". I actually went to their concert, dying a little on the inside with every song. Thankfully, your jealously needn't go unfulfilled. They are currently on tour all over the nation this summer, stopping in Philadelphia and Boston.

You're welcome.

4.) For those of you who remember that I had NO clue what my job would entail, let me tell you now:

I edit. All the time. I rewrite awkward sentences and check scriptural references for accuracy and punctuation, and sometimes I give the axe - brutally, bloodily, with great satisfaction - to wordy, repetitive, diction-challenged sentences that just repeat themselves in a circular fashion. (You see what I just did there? Exactly.)

I have my own office/cubicle section with a huge window facing out towards the city skyline and a fantastic view of the NPH parking lot. On good days, I will tell you that I like the quiet nature of my work, sitting in a secluded corner with some fresh coffee (Starbucks in a Dunkin's mug, oh the humanity!), reading through the work of dozens of respected authors who set the spiritual tone for that publication and having the authority to edit such work as I see fit. My most recent project is editing a book by a famous author whose works are on the shelf of nearly every pastor and religion major - talk doing something worthwhile! I enjoy discussing the proper placing of an m-dash or how to reference a sermon both written and preached. On those days, I am wholly an introvert and it feels empowering to be around people who understand the importance of sentence structure and correct punctuation.

But on bad days, I dread the isolation of my cubicle, when the only other people around are other editors with their office doors shut, concentrate on their own work.   On those days, the silence is oppressive and I can't help but envy the Barefoot Ministries office down the hallway that plays round-robin pingpong off their desks. My computer screen is very old, so the screen flickers  just enough that you feel as if your eyes will shrivel up and rot. Because I mostly edit curriculum (Sunday school lessons, Bible studies, quarterly devotions and magazines - and most recently, books!), the writing tends to be somewhat repetitive.

The managers of all the departments usually talk up their interns with other departments and recommend them for jobs and projects so they will get useful experience and feedback.  I overheard someone say once that they don't envy interns in my department, because that manager keeps to himself so that no one else knows who his intern is or how they are doing. In other words, the interns in my department leave the publishing house with few connections and little feedback to bolster their experience.

Well, that's depressing. So, I had two choices: be crushed and disappointed that no one will ever see my work, or make myself known on my own terms without relying on someone else to do it for me.

If you are reading this right now, you have some sort of relationship with me, be it casual acquaintance or life partner. You already know I picked Option Two.

The good thing about my personality type is extreme optimism, sheer nerve, ability to multi-task, a can-do spirit. That, combined with the conviction that God led me here--against all odds, against my inclinations and against every argument for financial responsibility--made me feel, well....unassailable.

I can do this. Living out here, driving around the prairie, getting lost every ten minutes, working proactively, texting in the office and not getting caught....yes, they are all in my grasp!

A little gumption, a little initiative, some guts and ample prayer. I can do this!