What makes a book a good book?

I'm asking.   I think I am enjoying the present "North and South" read but then read reviews and am not sure I am supposed to like it?   I suppose being written in 1855, it might be a "Pride and Prejudice" want to be.    It is fairly good and deals with a relative topic of that time.   Hmmm........how do I pick up any discriminatory taste?   I suppose I will just read it, ponder the social times and move on.   I am probably thinking too hard.  

Another book - North and South

I am now reading the book "North and South" by Elisabeth Gaskell.   It was written in 1855.   Silly me assumed it was about the Yankees and Southerners.....not.   Instead it is about the North and South of England and the class struggles of the time.  The surprise that anywhere else has a North and South?  Anyway, without giving too many spoilers, the main character spends much time pondering the classes different stations in life and how Christ is central to all no matter their station in life.   It is shockingly refreshing to read since that doesn't tend to the perspective of most or practically all modern literature.   Again a picture is painted, like Dicken's books, of the struggles of life related to faith and life and the centrality of Christ in every person's life, believer or not.   Worth reading.  

Distraction by Reading

I have this stupid struggle with depression and so since it is stupid but real, I have decided to distract myself by reading.....a lot.    The internet gives a person popcorn brain and facebook does not help all that much to distract but rather detracts from my functioning so.......between running away from the internet, at least during most of the day, and whacking away at my 'want to reads' and 'want to read to the kids' agenda, I might be able to keep my mind occupied against the evils lurking at my door with my head.   Sounds like a plan.

Of course reading could add to depression if I read to avoid real life.   Yuck.   The balance is a pain.   Can I handle structured life?   I might be able to remember structured life this week, but maybe I will forget next week?   Who knows.

My last read, "A Tale of Two Cities" was very awesome.   Some say it has too much tedium in the beginning, but I think I just want to reread the beginning so I can connect the dots of all the nuances I missed the first time round.   It took me weeks to find time to read at all so I thought I was just mixed up from forgetting what had already happened.   Perhaps I was just a bit lost.   I highly recommend it for excellent weaving of events and characters.   The Christ like sacrifice was beautifully written and a basic work of art.   Images of the feet walking and walking forward through life and death the sure end to all were rich.   I kind of wonder now if my grandfather was a fan of this book or if he chose the verse for his gravestone from a basic love of the promise it holds.  Perhaps my grandmother chose it.   Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life.[d] Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. John 11: 25 - 26.   Perhaps I will choose this for my gravestone.   I never met my grandfather but feel bonded to him in this verse.   It was a key verse in "A Tale".   Yay Dickens!   There are some of his I want to reread.   

So other than reading and running away from the internet as much as this weakling can manage.....remembering my responsibilities might be helpful too.   Hmmmm........runs away from laptop.   

Found my blog

I had to go to a friends blog to find my blog address.   I couldn't remember it or find it with many a search on my own personal laptop.   Hmm.....I don't have to blog but have heard   from here and there that other moms have read and enjoyed it so.....we shall see how we can document a better year here?  

Okay, the new year might not be better than last and that still is to be determined of course but last year was full of deaths of many people I know so am ready for a fresh start.    Things are not looking good for my in-laws as they struggle along with their health but I do have hope in the Resurrection so perhaps this year will be the year they get better?   Here's hoping!   Watching people fall into dementia and lose their ability to be independent is extremely sobering.   You see a glimmer of your own potential future.   Humbling.  

2014 brings my first grandchild.   Wow.   I am very much looking forward to baby.    Wow.   I am sure you will hear more about him/her (I know but am not telling) in the months to come.   Daughter dear had an entertaining Christmas break which allowed the opportunity to figure out baby gender.   Overdoing it is not advised but both she and baby are doing well.    She and hubby were busy with his family and reveling in his sister's wedding Monday.   It was beautiful.  

Now to crawl off to the shower and begin the day.   Many sick with colds/fevers and seem to be on the mend.   Spending New Year's Eve driving through a snow storm in Chicago was not my idea of fun but we made it and are safe and warm at home.   Time to work on my three year old's resolution to use the potty and I have already failed him.   Sigh.   Dipes and wipes march on.  

Spaghetti Squash

Seeing as one of my older boys does work for a vegetable farmer, we have access to the seconds on everything which is grown there.   I am hoping we can get a lot of spaghetti squash so I can sneak it into everything which has pasta in the ingredients.   Tonight’s meal was something I made up similar to a meal I make in the winter anyway.   It is a sort of taco lasagna.   

I mix and cook the following ingredients.

One pound ground sausage

One pound ground turkey

One large onion

a clove or two of garlic crushed

brown all of these and add, one heaping tablespoon cumin and one of chili powder.   The juice of one lime, one large green or red bell pepper,  leftover corn from corn on the cob, twelve or so tomatillas and 12 of romas seeded and chopped.  One large zucchini chopped well.   Then……the meat from one large or two small spaghetti squash.  Stir well.

I then took several packages of tortillas left in the fridge from previous recipes and lined my sheet cake pan with them.   Put half the meat/vege mix over the tortillas, spread the contents of one large container over top of this, add the other half of the meat/vege mix, top it with a bag of cheddar cheese to your liking and then I take the remains of tortilla chips that the kids have left, crushed them and sprinkled over the top.   

I baked it at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes depending on how hot you prefer your dinner and enjoy.   The kids were very happy to eat dinner and didn’t even notice the spaghetti squash.   Tomorrow I am going to try adding a spaghetti squash to my homemade chicken noodle soup but still add the noodles.   We shall see if the kids notice.

Take note my recipe is for a crowd also known as my family.   Cut the amount in half or freeze half in a pan for another time if your family does not require such a large quantity.   

And of course

if you blog on not grousing, then everyone will make you nuts so you are tempted to grouse.   Hee hee.....hee, heh, heh. heh,.........

Don't Stew

I didn't know what else to call this post.   It isn't related to meat.   It is about stewing over past hurts and disappointments.   I read recently, and wish I could remember where, an article about how to avoid letting hurtful words get inside you and fester.   I don't know why the article seemed fresh to me.    I have heard this sort of message plenty of times in conversation, sermons, advice given, but it struck me differently this time around.    The article was completely a reminder to discipline yourself not to give recognition to hurts by repeating them to yourself or to others.  

Examples of this came to mind.   I don't think I go anywhere without hearing women grousing about something.   Famous grousing is over little bitter comments of what their mother-in-law said or mother or neighbor or friend did......at their wedding, while they were expecting their first or second child, at church.    The example helped me ponder what would happen if we could just keep our mouths shut over these little hurts and injustices.   What if.   Well, I think the hurt and injustice would not become cemented in our brains so hard.  We might get along with those people more.   Repeating it just makes it fresh and hurtful all over again and of course we hurt the person who hurt us to begin with.   Why do this?


I think we tell these stories because it is fun and gives us attention and makes us feel better about ourselves.   That is not MY fresh observation (thanks Pastor).   (Thanks Jesus).   Shutting down our urge to grouse is a hard discipline but a worthwhile effort.   It isn't our effort but the work of the Holy Spirit.  

Explaining this further is hard for me to put into words.    Looking backwards, I can think of the many brides who spent years griping about what went wrong at their wedding.   What if..........they just overlooked what happened, if I overlooked what happened that was actually not that big a deal in the great scheme of life, and instead loved our neighbor by forgiving them and shutting up about it.   The hurt would leave the crevices of our mind and maybe we wouldn't have as much fun talking about our neighbor who hurt us.   Would that be so horrible?   50 plus years of grousing can be repeated and to what profit is THAT????   What if someone hurts us this week????   What if we just kept it to ourselves?   What if we didn't confront the person who hurt us (already screwed up with that thought today), then what?   Well, I am not going to try to answer that question but I do know this concept will always be a struggle for us sinners.   Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord that our sin is forgiven.   Thanks be to God that the Holy Spirit gives me a good shake every so often.   Thanks.   I needed that.  

Only brush the ones you want to keep

Chasing after all the little things and big things the kids need to be actively doing, can certainly be exhausting.   Teeth.   I have a hard enough time chasing after mine let alone the kids.   My hubby is better at chasing after their teeth and he hasn't been here much.   So I decided, after seeing a woman my age with disgustingly, screaming white teeth, to have a 'get your teeth whiter' contest.   I took pictures of their grins and next week we are going to take some new pictures and see if there is a difference.   I have picked up two minute hour glass timers (or whatever you call them) and that has helped some in the past, but the mere fact that they don't understand the twice a day concept makes me a bit tired.  

My mom, a dental hygienist by trade, seemed to have no trouble impressing upon us the importance of brushing but there were only two of us.   Charley and I have been boosting bottoms up on the counter, changing table, etc. for teeth brushing for almost 22 years and still counting.   The little ones get help and the older ones, we at this point, we can only pray they are chasing their teeth.   I have made the drill noise when asked what happens if they don't brush their teeth better............they have blank faces in return.   I hate that noise.  

It seems we escape the drill mainly for not drinking soda or juice etc.   They also have a mother who is incapable of making them cookies so that is a plus for them and my pocket book in dental bills.   Their father hates gum chewing.   He inherited that loathing from his parents who probably were strictly opposed to gum chewing from the lack of money for that luxury.   That too has helped.

I think I will go brush my teeth now.   Our reward for improvement in teeth brushing has been decided upon too by-the-way.   One package of Oreo cookies to be woofed by the kids who have shown improvement.   Perhaps we will have one package of Oreo's a week to make sure they are keeping up.

Acknowlegement

Acknowledgement is a word I have been pondering.   I think one of the hardest things to do as a human sinful person, is to acknowledge the person you are having conversation with or email with and stop thinking about yourself.   Wow.  I know I struggle with it.   I see others struggling with it.   Why is it so hard to just reply to questions or even get off our rears to go and help someone as an automatic response to a need.   Well, because we are sinful and caught up in ourselves would be the obvious answer.   

My kids hate it when I do not acknowledge them when I am working on the computer.   They do not like it when I am rushing about the house chasing after messes and can't sit down with them and just listen to them.   It is funny that I see glaringly why they might be frustrated with me over that and then on the other hand I see how impatient I am with others for similar reasons.   It is hard to remember that the person who has asked us something or told us something, might want at least a little 'yes, I hear you' or a reply of some sort.   So my pondering has been weakly focusing on acknowledging my 'people' when they need something and stop thinking about my own lazy butts need to chill in a chair or whatever.   

It is simply hard and please forgive my overlooking of all of you whom I may have offended.   Blessings on your day!

Talking and listening

It seems this is the most challenging thing.   I personally feel the stress of a lot of talking coming at me but how to model not feeling a need to fill the air with talk.   Large families with a lot of talking going on inside their walls can be quite exhausting.   I have many short people and tall people too who have something to say to me.   I am glad they do but it is a struggle to keep listening!   No answer is not an option.   I have been chatting with the kids about turning their focus a bit to listening, ignoring siblings who are purposely trying to get their goat, listening to themselves.   I don't think this will solve the problem, but having an awareness and teaching an awareness of how much talk is going on out of their own mouths and not their neighbors, is making a tiny bit of difference.   I will continue to plug along with this thought with the kids and my own mouth.   Being 46 though might result in my forgetting what the goal is as my forgetting things is the standard.
Proceeding in Faith.........