The Frugal Benefit of NOT Planning Menus Ahead

Menu-planning.  Everybody tells us that is the way to save money on the grocery budget. 

Okay, there's some truth to it.  You plan the menus, go to the grocery store once that week (or two weeks), buy what you need, and stick to the plan.  That's definitely more frugal than running to the store repeatedly or going out to eat. 

But I developed an even cheaper way.  I was shocked recently to see my scheme promoted on a website for eating local and organic.

Plan your menu AFTER shopping, not before. This allows you to stay on budget because you aren’t shopping for special ingredients to make pre-planned meals. You can take advantage of the best deals and plan your meals around those.  This can also help by keeping those unplanned budget purchases from going to waste in your crisper drawer while you carry on with your planned menu.

I like to jot down meal-plan ideas as I'm going through the store.   Lettuce is cheap?  Grab a few heads, write "taco salad" in the margin of your grocery list, and then make sure you grab a tomato and a pepper to be part of the salad.

Find some pork roast marked down to a frugal price because tomorrow is its expiration date?  Toss the roast in the cart, make a note of it in the margin, and remind yourself that it should be cooked tonight or tomorrow.

Find the el-cheapo deals at the store and then figure out what you'll turn it into. It doesn't always work: sometimes you can't find the fabulous deals.  Other weeks, time constraints at dinner will trump the plans you could've developed from the week's good deals at the store.  But other weeks, everything falls into place easily ... and for half the price of pre-planned menus.

Definition of "Engagement"

So if a couple is living together,
if they have a legal contract for rent or mortgage,
if they co-own pets, furniture, bank accounts,

what is it to become engaged?

Gary suggests that engagement really doesn't have anything to do with marriage (for most people out there in the world today) but is more about planning a big hoopla of a party ... and possibly a splendiferous vacation/honeymoon too.

And that would be why we Christians appear to be such oddities -- focused more on the decades-long marriage than on the day-long wedding.

And it would also explain why so many living-together couples end up divorcing not long into the marriage.  Sometimes the thing they had in common was the event of the wedding, and once that's past, it's past.

Sweet Honey from the Rock

Flipping through a homeschool catalog once upon a time, I saw a CD by the singers "Sweet Honey from the Rock."  I assumed the group's name came from the last verse of Psalm 81.  (Wiki confirms this.  For whatever that's worth.)

But the honey in the psalm isn't just about the stuff bees make.  And it's certainly not about richness and beauty coming from an unexpected location.  We read throughout Scripture* how the Rock-which-was-Christ provided for both physical and eternal needs.  We read how God's Word is eaten and tastes sweet.  Really, God?!  EAT a scroll?  And yet, Ezekiel and John both said it was true: the scroll was sweeter than honey.



* Ex 16, Deut 32:13
Ps 19:10, Ps 119:103
Ezek 3:3, Rev 10:9

Garden Report

The lettuces planted on April 5 took three weeks to germinate and come up.  They are now a whoppin' 1/4" tall.  This past Saturday I planted a mix of heirloom lettuces; some are 50-day lettuce and some 60 and some 75.   If I thin them properly, that should give me a good month's worth of lettuce from the one planting.  Knowing me, I'm afraid I'll thin so that only one variety will remain growing.

I had intended to again plant potatoes in a pile of dead leaves in the compost bed.  But as I pulled large old weeds out of the compost pile, I was amazed at the awesome beauty of that dirt.  Oh, it was black.  And soft and fine and crumbly.  Not clay-like at all.  I'm not wasting that luscious dirt on potatoes.  I'm putting something more precious in that raised bed which spent its last few summers as the compost pile.  I don't know yet what's going to live there this summer.  Probably a couple of tomatoes and some herbs and some more lettuces.

Potatoes should be planted in the waning moon.  I'd been sick during most of April's waning moon.  New moon was fast approaching, and several days of rain was due.  If I didn't get those potatoes in the ground before bedtime last Saturday, there'd be another 2-3 week delay.  So I dug trenches and hauled dead leaves to fill those trenches.  My potatoes are now in the dirt.  And they're being nicely and gently watered every day from the rain.  Of course, it's refrigerator temperature outside.  So I'm not sure how the seeds will fare.  But I've done what I can do.

The tulips have tight, small, very-green buds.  The lilacs have tiny green leaves on them, but no sign of buds.  The apples, crab apples, and cherry trees show no signs of leaves yet.  Usually by the end of April, the lilacs and the crab apples have already bloomed and are finishing their spring floweriness.  Not this year.

Honestly, with the weather, I'm not planning on summer crops.  No beans, no corn, no melons.  I figure I'll grow a few batches of spring veggies.  Except tomatoes.  Gotta at least try on the tomatoes!

Today's Laugh

Grabbed off Facebook:

What's so great about living in Switzerland?
Hmmm.
I guess the flag is a big plus.

What's That Word Mean, Anyhow?

When Jesus died, He "yielded up" His Spirit (Matt 27).

In the Lord's Prayer (Matt 6), we pray, "forgive us" our trespasses as we "forgive" those who trespass against us.

"Forgive" and "yielded up" are the same word in Greek -- send forth, discharge, let go, cancel, forgive, tolerate.

For being the same word in Greek, those sure sound very different in our English translations.  But I guess Jesus' death and letting go of the Holy Spirit is why forgiveness is preached and spread and spoken to sinners throughout the world.

Easter Pictures

Nanna got her hands on the Matthias.

This is just such a happy picture.

Beautiful mama.  And that couldn't possibly be a yawn from baby.   I think he must be singing "Alleluia"; don't you agree?

Not MY Problem

Judas went to the priests with his sin: "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood."  Hey, "you see to it," buster.  Not my problem, say the priests.

Later in the same chapter, Pilate sees that a riot is starting.  He says he's "innocent of the blood of this Just Man" and told them "you see to it."  Not my problem, says the governor.

In both cases, the man's station in life, his work, his job, was to deal with the problem before him.  But no: "you see to it."  

April Pictures

Zoe (and Alia) -- April 3

Zoe was showing me how she can put her hand by her chin in a certain ponderous pose: "Dis is what finking looks like."

Alia -- April 3

Where's Waldo?

Papa and Matthias -- April 6

My Lord and My God

Last weekend during the services, we kept hearing God call us "My people." 
The reproaches on Friday: "Oh, My people!"
And Friday's collect: "behold this Your family ..."
Isaiah 53: "for the transgressions of My people He was stricken."
Exodus 15: "in Your mercy You have led forth the people whom You have redeemed."
Isaiah 25: "the rebuke of His people He will take away."

And this week, Thomas:
"My Lord and my God."

Today's Laugh

 

 

Stolen from Polly's FB page

Lazy? Or Sick?

I cannot scold myself into not being weak.

But that doesn't stop me from trying.  Dumb me.

It's so hard to know when you're being lazy because your body is weak and ill and fighting germies ... and when you're Just Being Lazy.  You try to give yourself a kick in the heinie and make yourself tackle that list of projects.  But then you don't bother to get out of bed in the morning, lying there to amuse yourself reading a story till far too late.  Or you plunk on the couch and watch television.  "Do something productive," you yell at yourself.  But you keep being unproductive. 

So you nap.
And you cough. 
And you blow your nose.

The only reason I can even begin to convince myself that it's not complete laziness on my part?  Last Sunday afternoon's fever.  And the fact that Katie's family has all the same symptoms.  When a 5-yr-old doesn't want to listen to stories but begs to be put to bed early, you know something besides laziness is plaguing her. 

Saving Mr Banks

Savings Mr Banks was one we'd intended to see in [gasp!] the theatre.  Like other people.  But we never made it.  So we watched it on DVD recently.  Oh my goodness -- it was so good that we watched it a second time before taking it back to the library!

Basic plot: Author of the book Mary Poppins doesn't want to sell the rights to Disney, who wants to turn the book into a musical/movie.  

I don't know how much truth there is to the characters and to their histories and motivations.  But it makes a very good story regardless.  Thought-provoking to see the effect on children of an irresponsible daddy who nevertheless shows much affection to his children.  Fun and amusing to see bits and pieces of Mary Poppins lines come out of the mouths of certain characters in the movie. 

Rating: Not sure why it's a PG-13.  It's seems cleaner overall than quite a few PG's I've watched.  Granted it's not something I'd want under-13's to see ... but I'd say the same about most of the PG movies out there.  (And personally, the vast majority of the PG-13's available today should be rated R in my opinion.  But that's another topic....)

Point of both stories:  As a kid, I always thought Mary Poppins was about the nanny rescuing the kids.  It wasn't until I was grown up that I realized that wasn't the main point of the movie.  At all.  In last year's movie, at one point, the author tells the movie producer, "You think this is about saving the children?!"  And she walks away, shaking her head.  And that is what both Mary Poppins and Saving Mr Banks are about.

Today's Laugh

Another groaner from Tyler:

John really liked Emmaline.  He asked her to accompany him to the prom.  Emmaline accepted.  John was delighted.  He wanted to make it a wonderful evening of memories.  What special plans would enhance their evening?

John decided to rent a tuxedo.  He found a tux store.  When he arrived, he found that many of the other guys at school had had the same idea.  The line was long.  But he wanted to look snazzy for his date with Emmaline.  So he waited and waited.  Finally it was his turn.  He chose a style and was fitted for it and paid his down-payment. 

While John was waiting at the tux store, he'd heard some of the other guys talking about flowers.  Yes, he needed beautiful flowers for Emmaline.  He went to the florist.   He found a long line there too.  But he was patient; he waited until a florist could help him choose the corsage that would be just perfect for Emmaline's dress.

A few days later, John had the idea to go one step further in the classiness-department.  He would rent a limo for prom night.  He hunted up a place and headed over there to make arrangements.  This place too had a long line of fellows with the same idea.  So John waited until he could set up the use of the limo and finalize the contract.

Finally, prom night arrived.  John picked up Emmaline.  Her mom wanted to take so many pictures.  John, in his tux.  Emmaline, in her gown with the beautiful flowers.  The couple stepping into the limousine. 

After a luscious dinner, Emmaline and John walked into the dance.  They visited with friends.  They laughed.  They danced.  They had a good time.  They got thirsty.  Emmaline asked John to get her a cup of punch.  So John walked straight over to the refreshment table.  And there was no punch line.

False Accusations

The beatitudes end with "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake."

So what kinds of evil?  I suppose it might include things like, "Hey, the pastor embezzled thousands of dollars from the church" (which is entirely a lie) or "My neighbor is a Christian and he does _____" (which likewise is completely a fabrication).

But the evil they spoke against Jesus?  "He is overturning the Law."
The evil spoken against the apostles?  "Overturning the Law."

That's why Jesus was reviled and persecuted and killed.
That's why the apostles were too.

Thing is, that evil accusation ("overturning the law") is NOT TRUE.  Those who idolize the Law think the accusation is true.  But it's not.  Jesus fulfilled the Law; He did not do away with it.

Recent Days

Holy Week: church, job, sleep, and working on the bridesmaid dress.  That was about it.

After making adjustments to the pattern and cutting out the pieces for a trial dress, I found my pattern was way off.  So I remade the bodice pattern and, luckily, had enough spare fabric to remake the main pieces of the bodice.  That didn't work either; the dress fits me pretty decently, which means it is five sizes off.   In frustration, I set it aside for a few days.

And then I coughed.  A lot.  And missed out on enjoying the pleasure of the kids' visits.  But hey, I could nevertheless sing for Good Friday and Easter, even with some coughs. Gary and Katie prepared and cleaned up Easter dinner.  I was so thankful!  During the afternoon I developed a fever and had to sleep away much of the day. 

Today was trial-bodice #3 for for the bridesmaid dress.  Much closer to actually fitting Maggie!  Pattern #4 was created this evening.  I hope to piece another test-bodice together tomorrow.  If there's success (??) I can hit up the fabric store to make a complete trial-dress that will be wearable instead of just something to test the size.

You know what?  Sewing is a breeze when all you have to do is follow the pattern and make a few adjustments for length or something simple.

Today's Laugh

Another bad pun from my co-worker --

but read it out loud because I'm not sure

this is a joke that can be communicated in writing:

The bear walked into the bar.

The bartender asked, "What can I get for you, sir?"

The bear grumbled, "A rum and ...

...

...

...




...

...


... coke."


The bartender was puzzled.  "What's with the big pause?"

Be Perfect

"Be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5). 

Yikey-schnikey!  If you're like me, you can't help but hear that as a word of condemnation, as a command which you can never obey.

Pastor made a comparison recently.
Think of all the stories in the Gospels.  Jesus laid hands on a leper and said, "Be healed."  And the sick person is healed.

Jesus laid hands on a blind man and said, "Receive your sight."  And the man could see.

Jesus laid hands on a deaf person and said, "Be healed."  And the person was healed and could hear. 

In any of those cases, do we congratulate the person for healing himself?  Duh .....  NO.  The glory goes to the Lord Jesus who healed those who could not heal themselves.



So why this weird switcheroo when it comes to His performative word: "Be perfect"?
HE declares it.
HE makes it so.
Is that the command we sinners perceive it to be?
Or is it a blessing and a gift?

Today's Laugh

My co-worker Tyler was telling some jokes today at lunch.  At their Easter dinner, his family got going on a run of Bad Joke Telling.  Here's one:

Why can't you tell puns
to kleptomaniacs?

Because they take 

everything literally.

A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss

But a rotating fan gathers LOST of dust!

I learned something about dust one day in confirmation class.  (That was not the pastor's plan that day, I'm sure.)   After our section on the commandments, all of us 8th-graders were taking a quiz.  "True or false? Betsy shows respect for God's Word by dusting her Bible every week."  Everybody in class (except one girl) answered "true."  Pastor said the answer was "false."   The class protested.  Turns out that our misunderstanding had more to do with cleaning than with valuing God's word.    Pastor (and the one girl who got the right answer) insisted that a Bible that is used won't get dusty.  Pastor said that it shows more love for God's word to be reading it than to leave it sit unused to get dusty. 

Things get dusty when they're not used?  Who knew?

Anyway ...
According to that logic, a fan should grow dustier when sitting still than when being used.  Guess what?  When I began to keep house, I learned that's not the way it works.  The other day, I found lights and fan on in an empty room.  Buttinsky me turned off the light and the fan.  And this picture shows what I found.  Yuck!  I wonder how long it's been since that fan was off?