Lesson learned on Christmas afternoon (the very firstest Christmas in which we hung our socks by the fireplace):
If you want to start a fire for a cozy atmosphere, either
a) remove the socks from their hooks, or
b) remove the chocolate from the socks.
Yup. It's a plan that we shan't forget next year.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
Post-Christmas Sale
Sign on the door of the hardware store today:
I giggled as I walked in.
I giggled as I requested the bill for my solar salt.
I asked about the Santa heads.
The clerk was new; I'd never seen her before; she was not amused; she explained what "Santa heads" were and where they were located; she told me these were the heads that you would stick on a light post.
And then I thought it was even more hilariously warped and sick.
When I told the family at supper about the sign at Ace Hardware, they started dreaming up Halloween scenarios of Santa heads on pikes (aka, light posts) all around the front yard. Talk about scarring little children for life... !
Now that I try looking up "Santa heads" online in various places to provide a link, I'm not finding such a thing. I'm wondering if the guys were pulling a fast one on the new clerk.
50% off all Christmas merchandise
Christmas lights
Christmas trees
inflatable snowmen
Santa heads
Christmas lights
Christmas trees
inflatable snowmen
Santa heads
I giggled as I walked in.
I giggled as I requested the bill for my solar salt.
I asked about the Santa heads.
The clerk was new; I'd never seen her before; she was not amused; she explained what "Santa heads" were and where they were located; she told me these were the heads that you would stick on a light post.
And then I thought it was even more hilariously warped and sick.
When I told the family at supper about the sign at Ace Hardware, they started dreaming up Halloween scenarios of Santa heads on pikes (aka, light posts) all around the front yard. Talk about scarring little children for life... !
Now that I try looking up "Santa heads" online in various places to provide a link, I'm not finding such a thing. I'm wondering if the guys were pulling a fast one on the new clerk.
A Picture of Heaven
Sunday morning. Feast of Stephen, so the nights are still long and the days brief. 6:30, an hour before sun-up on a cloudy day, so the dark of night is not yet banished.
The world is quiet. The whole way to church at this early hour, I see only one other vehicle, and that one is a couple of blocks away on a side street. The businesses are darkened. The windows in the homes are dark; not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse.
I approach the church driveway and look back across the lawn and see the building lit. Light floods from the windows. The church shines, surrounded by darkness. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. In that building is the voice that absolves sinners. In that building is the altar, the mercyseat, the place of God's saving presence, where the body of the King of the Universe gives life, where the angels singing with all His saints unite.
Here is Jesus' manger. Here is heaven.
I wish I'd had my camera. I would have traipsed out to the street (even in the cold) and snapped a photo to capture that icon someplace a little more reliable than just my memory.
Yet, in thy dark streets shineth
the everlasting light.
The hopes and fears of all the years
are met in thee tonight.
The world is quiet. The whole way to church at this early hour, I see only one other vehicle, and that one is a couple of blocks away on a side street. The businesses are darkened. The windows in the homes are dark; not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse.
I approach the church driveway and look back across the lawn and see the building lit. Light floods from the windows. The church shines, surrounded by darkness. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. In that building is the voice that absolves sinners. In that building is the altar, the mercyseat, the place of God's saving presence, where the body of the King of the Universe gives life, where the angels singing with all His saints unite.
Here is Jesus' manger. Here is heaven.
I wish I'd had my camera. I would have traipsed out to the street (even in the cold) and snapped a photo to capture that icon someplace a little more reliable than just my memory.
Yet, in thy dark streets shineth
the everlasting light.
The hopes and fears of all the years
are met in thee tonight.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Sweet 16
Julie arranged this awesome bow to adorn Maggie's birthday present. She took thin ribbon and threaded 8 long pieces through a store-bought bow and then stapled the ribbons to anchor them into the center of the bow. Then she tied sugar cubes onto the ends of the ribbons. Isn't that just the cutest thing you ever saw?!!!
Hugging
You're "supposed" to hug your kids and tell them you love them. I never did that as much as I should have. When we moved here, and I would see Pastor hug his wife and sons so often at church, I would sometimes feel guilty for not being more demonstrative with my affection for my family.
Then I started the job.
I wasn't home as often.
Now I am driven to hug them more. During my two weeks of training at the nearby branch, I came home from lunch and hugged the kids. When I got to church on Wednesday night for Advent services (coming straight to church from work) I would hug the kids and Gary.
When those absences from your dear ones are forced upon you, maybe that's what makes you more huggy.
Then I started the job.
I wasn't home as often.
Now I am driven to hug them more. During my two weeks of training at the nearby branch, I came home from lunch and hugged the kids. When I got to church on Wednesday night for Advent services (coming straight to church from work) I would hug the kids and Gary.
When those absences from your dear ones are forced upon you, maybe that's what makes you more huggy.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Sheep and Shepherds
The last line of the Venite (Psalm 95) says that we are "the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand." I don't know about you, but I tend to think of a pasture as a place for sheep, not for people. I've been pondering on the oddness of "people of His pasture" for a few months. I think Pastor accidentally answered it for me during last Sunday's Bible class.
We were studying Luke 2. The shepherds heard from the angels. They went to Bethlehem to see this thing which had come to pass. And they blabbed it all over the place! They told! They couldn't hold in the joy of the news that the Messiah had come to save sinners! "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
But the Apostle John not only points out Jesus, the Lamb; he also is the one who records Jesus' discourse on the Good Shepherd. Jesus is both the Lamb and the Good Shepherd. Our pastors are shepherds, but they are also Jesus' lambs. Same for us: "I am Jesus' little lamb; ever glad at heart I am...." Still, we (like the shepherds) tell our children and our friends and our neighbors about the Good Shepherd. If Jesus is both Lamb and Shepherd, we who are joined to Him would also be both lambs and shepherds.
And maybe that explains the line in the Venite.
Like shepherds who have heard the angel's preaching, let us go now even unto Bethlehem (the House of Bread) and sing the [tweaked] Easter hymn:
Then let us feast this [Christmas] day
on Christ, the bread of heaven.
The Word of grace has purged away
the old and evil leaven.
Christ our Lord our souls will feed;
He is our meat and drink indeed.
Faith lives upon no other. Alleluia!
We were studying Luke 2. The shepherds heard from the angels. They went to Bethlehem to see this thing which had come to pass. And they blabbed it all over the place! They told! They couldn't hold in the joy of the news that the Messiah had come to save sinners! "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
But the Apostle John not only points out Jesus, the Lamb; he also is the one who records Jesus' discourse on the Good Shepherd. Jesus is both the Lamb and the Good Shepherd. Our pastors are shepherds, but they are also Jesus' lambs. Same for us: "I am Jesus' little lamb; ever glad at heart I am...." Still, we (like the shepherds) tell our children and our friends and our neighbors about the Good Shepherd. If Jesus is both Lamb and Shepherd, we who are joined to Him would also be both lambs and shepherds.
And maybe that explains the line in the Venite.
Like shepherds who have heard the angel's preaching, let us go now even unto Bethlehem (the House of Bread) and sing the [tweaked] Easter hymn:
Then let us feast this [Christmas] day
on Christ, the bread of heaven.
The Word of grace has purged away
the old and evil leaven.
Christ our Lord our souls will feed;
He is our meat and drink indeed.
Faith lives upon no other. Alleluia!
Today's Laugh
Philip was telling us today that Matt (who is a doctor) has a t-shirt that says "Trust me, I'm a doctor." We looked up a picture, and this is what we found.
(You have to be pretty geeky to get this, but some of us are highly amused!)
(You have to be pretty geeky to get this, but some of us are highly amused!)
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Today's Laugh
A man went to his dentist because he felt something wrong in his mouth. The dentist examined him and said, "That new upper plate I put in for you six months ago is eroding. What have you been eating?"
The man replied, Aall I can think of is that about four months ago my wife made some asparagus and put some stuff on it that was delicious ... Hollandaise sauce. I loved it so much I now put it on everything — meat, toast, fish, vegetables, everything."
"Well," said the dentist, "that's probably the problem. Hollandaise sauce is made with lots of lemon juice, which is highly corrosive. It's eaten away your upper plate. I'll make you a new plate, and this time I'll use chrome."
"Why chrome?" asked the patient.
The dentist replied, "It's simple. Everyone knows that there's no plate like chrome for the Hollandaise!"
The man replied, Aall I can think of is that about four months ago my wife made some asparagus and put some stuff on it that was delicious ... Hollandaise sauce. I loved it so much I now put it on everything — meat, toast, fish, vegetables, everything."
"Well," said the dentist, "that's probably the problem. Hollandaise sauce is made with lots of lemon juice, which is highly corrosive. It's eaten away your upper plate. I'll make you a new plate, and this time I'll use chrome."
"Why chrome?" asked the patient.
The dentist replied, "It's simple. Everyone knows that there's no plate like chrome for the Hollandaise!"
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Presents Under the Tree
I didn't think we'd have presents this year. But the tree is surrounded!
1. A stranger showed up last week with a large bag full of presents from an anonymous giver. We're still scratching our heads over that one.
2. Nathan's folks sent presents for Alia, Katie, and Nathan. Those currently are sitting under our tree, as the kids don't have a tree at their apartment.
3. Yee-haw for the dollar store!
4. Some of the items under the tree are not really presents. For instance, there are a few textbooks that should've been cracked a couple of weeks ago, but we wrapped them up instead and are calling them gifts.
5. Another yee-haw for sales and "here's-$10-to-spend" coupons. I bought a $30 gift today for $4.
6. And "wow!" for the gift cards available. With sale prices and a coupon and some Kohl's Cash from a friend, I bought two gifts (worth $150) for less than $10. We came out of Target with a $50 family-gift that Maggie paid $15 for. We hit up Best Buy and paid a whole dollar for $28 worth of fun stuff.
7. I'm not spending money we don't have for gifts that people don't need. But I do have stuff that I made over the summer that I can give to the older kids so that they can have something for Christmas.
8. A homeschooling friend wanted to get rid of a "5-minute toy." It looks like it will be amusing for an afternoon or a week. All we had to do was buy the batteries.
Thanks to some generous friends and last-minute shopping, we found some non-frivolous (but enjoyable and helpful) gifts so that everyone will have at least one thing to open on Christmas afternoon. That is so cool!
1. A stranger showed up last week with a large bag full of presents from an anonymous giver. We're still scratching our heads over that one.
2. Nathan's folks sent presents for Alia, Katie, and Nathan. Those currently are sitting under our tree, as the kids don't have a tree at their apartment.
3. Yee-haw for the dollar store!
4. Some of the items under the tree are not really presents. For instance, there are a few textbooks that should've been cracked a couple of weeks ago, but we wrapped them up instead and are calling them gifts.
5. Another yee-haw for sales and "here's-$10-to-spend" coupons. I bought a $30 gift today for $4.
6. And "wow!" for the gift cards available. With sale prices and a coupon and some Kohl's Cash from a friend, I bought two gifts (worth $150) for less than $10. We came out of Target with a $50 family-gift that Maggie paid $15 for. We hit up Best Buy and paid a whole dollar for $28 worth of fun stuff.
7. I'm not spending money we don't have for gifts that people don't need. But I do have stuff that I made over the summer that I can give to the older kids so that they can have something for Christmas.
8. A homeschooling friend wanted to get rid of a "5-minute toy." It looks like it will be amusing for an afternoon or a week. All we had to do was buy the batteries.
Thanks to some generous friends and last-minute shopping, we found some non-frivolous (but enjoyable and helpful) gifts so that everyone will have at least one thing to open on Christmas afternoon. That is so cool!
Doubting Thomas on the Solstice
So does anybody else find enchanting the two celebrations for this one date?
The antiphon for this day is "O Dayspring, splendor of light everlasting: come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death." It reminds us of Zachariah's song at the birth of his son John: "... by the forgiveness of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."
Thomas didn't see Jesus that first evening after the resurrection. Thomas was in the darkness of unbelief and doubt. The Apostle John writes at the beginning of his gospel: "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.... He came to His own, but His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God." On this feast of the holy Apostle Thomas, we remember his doubts that are so like unto our doubts. We see in him our flesh's desire to trust what we see and experience instead of what we hear from our Lord. But we also see a Savior who remained faithful even when we are faithless. We see a Savior who was committed to fulfilling His word. We see because He is the light. We see because He gives sight to the blind.
Enlighten our darkness with the light of Your Christ.
May His word be a lamp to our feet
and a light to our path.
For You are merciful, and You love Your whole creation.
And we, Your creatures, glorify You,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The antiphon for this day is "O Dayspring, splendor of light everlasting: come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death." It reminds us of Zachariah's song at the birth of his son John: "... by the forgiveness of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."
Thomas didn't see Jesus that first evening after the resurrection. Thomas was in the darkness of unbelief and doubt. The Apostle John writes at the beginning of his gospel: "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.... He came to His own, but His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God." On this feast of the holy Apostle Thomas, we remember his doubts that are so like unto our doubts. We see in him our flesh's desire to trust what we see and experience instead of what we hear from our Lord. But we also see a Savior who remained faithful even when we are faithless. We see a Savior who was committed to fulfilling His word. We see because He is the light. We see because He gives sight to the blind.
Enlighten our darkness with the light of Your Christ.
May His word be a lamp to our feet
and a light to our path.
For You are merciful, and You love Your whole creation.
And we, Your creatures, glorify You,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Comfort?
Why the difference? Some people say, "I know this is hard for you," and you can feel the sympathy and the love coming through. Others say, "I know this is hard for you," and somehow it comes off as an implication that it shouldn't be hard for you, and what's the matter with you that it is?
Sunday, December 19, 2010
At Home
Phone calls around here often proceed thusly:
Maggie: Hello, [last name] residence.
Caller: Hi, Susan. [blah blah blah]
Maggie: Ummmm... this is Maggie. I can go get my mom for you.
Caller: Oh. Okay. Wow, you sound just like your mom.
So yesterday I pick up the telephone.
Susan: Hello, [last name] residence.
Caller: Hi. Is your dad home? If so, may I talk to him?
Susan: Peter???
Caller: This isn't Maggie?
Susan: No, it's Susan. My dad is home, but you can't talk to him for a couple more decades. So, would you like to talk to my husband?
Y'know, that's such a comforting thing to say. He is at home.
"At home."
Beautiful words!
Maggie: Hello, [last name] residence.
Caller: Hi, Susan. [blah blah blah]
Maggie: Ummmm... this is Maggie. I can go get my mom for you.
Caller: Oh. Okay. Wow, you sound just like your mom.
So yesterday I pick up the telephone.
Susan: Hello, [last name] residence.
Caller: Hi. Is your dad home? If so, may I talk to him?
Susan: Peter???
Caller: This isn't Maggie?
Susan: No, it's Susan. My dad is home, but you can't talk to him for a couple more decades. So, would you like to talk to my husband?
Y'know, that's such a comforting thing to say. He is at home.
"At home."
Beautiful words!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Raisins in Cookies
Some people like raisins in their cookies. Those people can click onto the next blog on their list right now.
Some people complain when their wives or mothers put raisins in the cookies. Big old lumpy chewy things. But sometimes that mother wants to put raisins in the cookies. Oh, y'know, because maybe she likes the raisins. Or she wants to sneak some extra nutrition into the cookies. Or other equally evil subterfuges.
When you're mixing together the cookie dough, save out about 1/4 or 1/2 cup of the flour. Put the raisins into your food processor. Sprinkle that reserved flour on top of the raisins in the food processor. Turn on the machine, and let it grind up your raisins into little pieces. (The more you have to hide them, the smaller you chop them.) Into the batter they go. If you ground them small enough, none of your raisin-haters will even notice ... except for how sweet and tasty the cookies are. "These are better than usual, Mom!" "Yes, dear, they are, aren't they?"
Some people complain when their wives or mothers put raisins in the cookies. Big old lumpy chewy things. But sometimes that mother wants to put raisins in the cookies. Oh, y'know, because maybe she likes the raisins. Or she wants to sneak some extra nutrition into the cookies. Or other equally evil subterfuges.
When you're mixing together the cookie dough, save out about 1/4 or 1/2 cup of the flour. Put the raisins into your food processor. Sprinkle that reserved flour on top of the raisins in the food processor. Turn on the machine, and let it grind up your raisins into little pieces. (The more you have to hide them, the smaller you chop them.) Into the batter they go. If you ground them small enough, none of your raisin-haters will even notice ... except for how sweet and tasty the cookies are. "These are better than usual, Mom!" "Yes, dear, they are, aren't they?"
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Hello, It's Me Again!
Six days in a row I show up at chapel in a dress and hose and nice shoes. And then on the next day, I show up at chapel in my jeans, hoodie sweatshirt, and tennies. Several people said, "Oh, you don't work today?"
And I thought ...
"Ah, I look like me again!"
And I thought ...
"Ah, I look like me again!"
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Transubstantiation
Lutherans have been told that transubstantiation is bad bad bad. That's what the Catholics believe, right? On occasion, when I have mentioned bread and wine "changing into" the body and blood of Christ when joined with the Words of our Lord, I have been scolded by Lutherans. "We don't believe it changes into Jesus' body and blood," they say. "That's what Catholics believe."
I don't understand. It wasn't Jesus' body and blood. Now it is. Something changed. What's so wretched about saying "changes into"?
I have been told by some folks that Lutherans believe in consubstantiation. Other folks have said that Lutherans do not believe in consubstantiation. That one puzzled me too. We often use the prepositions "in, with, and under." "Con" means "with." So what's so wretched about that term?
Well, there's been a lot of talk about these matters during Bible classes the last couple of months. And here's what I've learned:
"Consubstantiation" has too much of a location sense to it. It's almost like saying Jesus' body is with the bread, like Bob and Joe go to the hardware store with each other. But Bob isn't Joe, and Joe isn't Bob. So "consubstantiation" isn't a good term, because the bread is Jesus' body.
So what's the deal with transubstantiation? We Lutherans do not argue with the Roman Catholics about the bread really being Jesus' body; we agree. The disagreement we have with Rome is that they don't really quite think the bread is still there; they think it just appears to be bread but is really Jesus' body. Not a huge error -- certainly not like the error which sets aside Jesus' word "This is My body" and considers the bread to be mere bread which symbolizes Jesus' body. But why do they think the bread is no longer there?
It sounds like it's just too much closeness. Too much of God condescending to us. Too much dirtying Himself with mere atoms and molecules. How could God be bread? How humiliating that would be for Him!
But if we believe that He made matter and called it good, ...
if we believe that He took on human flesh and joined Himself to our race, incarnated in the womb of the virgin so that He might be our brother and save us, ...
if we believe that He doesn't want to maintain distance between Himself and His creatures, ...
then we believe that our God's joy and delight is to be joined to us! He does not want to keep His distance! He doesn't have to change the bread so that it is no longer bread but is only His body. He chooses to come in this very concrete [even fleshy] way.
The problem with Rome's transubstantiation is NOT that they think too highly of what that bread is, or what is in that chalice. The problem, rather, is the subtle little separation: Christ's body and Christ's blood couldn't possibly be so intimately joined with the bread and wine.
But He is! And He is joined to my flesh. And your flesh. Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say 'rejoice'!
Oh, Christian heart,
whoe'er thou art,
be of good cheer and let no sorrow move thee.
For God's own Child in mercy mild
joins thee to Him --
how greatly God must love thee!! (TLH 81:4)
I don't understand. It wasn't Jesus' body and blood. Now it is. Something changed. What's so wretched about saying "changes into"?
I have been told by some folks that Lutherans believe in consubstantiation. Other folks have said that Lutherans do not believe in consubstantiation. That one puzzled me too. We often use the prepositions "in, with, and under." "Con" means "with." So what's so wretched about that term?
Well, there's been a lot of talk about these matters during Bible classes the last couple of months. And here's what I've learned:
"Consubstantiation" has too much of a location sense to it. It's almost like saying Jesus' body is with the bread, like Bob and Joe go to the hardware store with each other. But Bob isn't Joe, and Joe isn't Bob. So "consubstantiation" isn't a good term, because the bread is Jesus' body.
So what's the deal with transubstantiation? We Lutherans do not argue with the Roman Catholics about the bread really being Jesus' body; we agree. The disagreement we have with Rome is that they don't really quite think the bread is still there; they think it just appears to be bread but is really Jesus' body. Not a huge error -- certainly not like the error which sets aside Jesus' word "This is My body" and considers the bread to be mere bread which symbolizes Jesus' body. But why do they think the bread is no longer there?
It sounds like it's just too much closeness. Too much of God condescending to us. Too much dirtying Himself with mere atoms and molecules. How could God be bread? How humiliating that would be for Him!
But if we believe that He made matter and called it good, ...
if we believe that He took on human flesh and joined Himself to our race, incarnated in the womb of the virgin so that He might be our brother and save us, ...
if we believe that He doesn't want to maintain distance between Himself and His creatures, ...
then we believe that our God's joy and delight is to be joined to us! He does not want to keep His distance! He doesn't have to change the bread so that it is no longer bread but is only His body. He chooses to come in this very concrete [even fleshy] way.
The problem with Rome's transubstantiation is NOT that they think too highly of what that bread is, or what is in that chalice. The problem, rather, is the subtle little separation: Christ's body and Christ's blood couldn't possibly be so intimately joined with the bread and wine.
But He is! And He is joined to my flesh. And your flesh. Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say 'rejoice'!
Oh, Christian heart,
whoe'er thou art,
be of good cheer and let no sorrow move thee.
For God's own Child in mercy mild
joins thee to Him --
how greatly God must love thee!! (TLH 81:4)
Monday, December 13, 2010
First Week of Work
My feet hurt. No surprise there -- LOL. And last week there was a lot of sitting in the training room, with only a couple hours a day on my feet. This week will be lots of standing.
I managed not to become dehydrated. I usually do that when I get out of the house instead of living in close proximity to my stove, fridge, and kitchen sink, with occasional forays to the washer & dryer.
The disadvantage of being older is that I don't bop around the computer screen at a high rate of speed, finding links to click to give me the information I need to take care of a customer. And then there are a gazillion different user-id's and passwords to remember for work. The advantage of being older is that I have a lot more understanding of how a bank works, how the whole economy works, and what sort of products banks have available (especially ours, because I've been a customer there for a year before becoming employed there).
There were five of us being trained last week. Two had been tellers before. Three of us had never worked in a bank. It was SO comforting to know that the other two newbies were struggling as much as I was to follow directions and remember procedures. The scariest part is going to be learning to identify counterfeits. Right now, I suspect every check I see of being faked and want to examine it closely. I can just see myself with lines of 20 or 30 people, waiting impatiently to get their turn at Miss Pokey-Teller's window.
Last week was training in a meeting room. The next two weeks are training in a real bank, with real live customers depositing & withdrawing real live money. The one delight in seeing my schedule for the next two weeks is that I don't work Saturdays yet (because my mentor doesn't work Saturdays) ... so I get to go to Lessons&Carols rehearsal next week and sing and sing and sing. Singing Christmas hymns can be antidote to whatever is wrong in life.
I managed not to become dehydrated. I usually do that when I get out of the house instead of living in close proximity to my stove, fridge, and kitchen sink, with occasional forays to the washer & dryer.
The disadvantage of being older is that I don't bop around the computer screen at a high rate of speed, finding links to click to give me the information I need to take care of a customer. And then there are a gazillion different user-id's and passwords to remember for work. The advantage of being older is that I have a lot more understanding of how a bank works, how the whole economy works, and what sort of products banks have available (especially ours, because I've been a customer there for a year before becoming employed there).
There were five of us being trained last week. Two had been tellers before. Three of us had never worked in a bank. It was SO comforting to know that the other two newbies were struggling as much as I was to follow directions and remember procedures. The scariest part is going to be learning to identify counterfeits. Right now, I suspect every check I see of being faked and want to examine it closely. I can just see myself with lines of 20 or 30 people, waiting impatiently to get their turn at Miss Pokey-Teller's window.
Last week was training in a meeting room. The next two weeks are training in a real bank, with real live customers depositing & withdrawing real live money. The one delight in seeing my schedule for the next two weeks is that I don't work Saturdays yet (because my mentor doesn't work Saturdays) ... so I get to go to Lessons&Carols rehearsal next week and sing and sing and sing. Singing Christmas hymns can be antidote to whatever is wrong in life.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Vintage
In a conversation last week, several people were talking about their cool "vintage purse" or "vintage sweater" or "vintage bowl" or "vintage chair." I sat there quietly, listening, not wanting to reveal that I didn't know what "vintage" meant. Silly me -- I thought "vintage" had something to do with vines (as in, grape harvests or wine) or possibly something classy and old.
Turns out that "vintage" apparently is the new word for "used." If you have a hand-me-down purse that's 3 years old, it's just "used." But if your used purse is 20 years old, then it's "vintage" and you can consider yourself classy and trendy-but-with-respect-for-recycling.
Huh. And here I thought "used" covered "antique" and "vintage" and "used." Color me cheap.
Turns out that "vintage" apparently is the new word for "used." If you have a hand-me-down purse that's 3 years old, it's just "used." But if your used purse is 20 years old, then it's "vintage" and you can consider yourself classy and trendy-but-with-respect-for-recycling.
Huh. And here I thought "used" covered "antique" and "vintage" and "used." Color me cheap.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Despised and Afflicted
From Good Friday's Old Testament reading --
He is despised and rejected by men,
a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.
Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
Try reading that once with an emphasis on the pronouns. HE is despised, and WE hid OUR faces from HIM. Surely HE has borne OUR griefs and carried OUR sorrows. Yet WE esteemed HIM stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
That's pretty warped. He took our punishment, and we hated Him for it. We deserved an eternal thumping, didn't get it, and looked down the one who endured it for us.
But now look at Psalm 22, which we hear late on Maundy Thursday, during the stripping of the altar:
He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
nor has He hidden His face from Him;
but when He cried to Him, He heard.
Jesus was afflicted so that we might be spared. We despised Him for it, but the Father did not. "It pleased the Lord to bruise Him." It pleased the Father that His Son rescued us. Jesus did not despise what He had to do. The Father did not hide His face from the ugliness of what our sin did to Jesus, but heard His prayer and raised Him up. The Father did not hide His face from the ugliness of what our sin did to Jesus, but mankind did.
Still, even with that kind of response from sinners, still He died that we might be His own.
He is despised and rejected by men,
a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.
Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
Try reading that once with an emphasis on the pronouns. HE is despised, and WE hid OUR faces from HIM. Surely HE has borne OUR griefs and carried OUR sorrows. Yet WE esteemed HIM stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
That's pretty warped. He took our punishment, and we hated Him for it. We deserved an eternal thumping, didn't get it, and looked down the one who endured it for us.
But now look at Psalm 22, which we hear late on Maundy Thursday, during the stripping of the altar:
He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
nor has He hidden His face from Him;
but when He cried to Him, He heard.
Jesus was afflicted so that we might be spared. We despised Him for it, but the Father did not. "It pleased the Lord to bruise Him." It pleased the Father that His Son rescued us. Jesus did not despise what He had to do. The Father did not hide His face from the ugliness of what our sin did to Jesus, but heard His prayer and raised Him up. The Father did not hide His face from the ugliness of what our sin did to Jesus, but mankind did.
Still, even with that kind of response from sinners, still He died that we might be His own.
Thursday, December 09, 2010
Frontline Plus
We seldom deal with fleas here. When the cats run across a flea or two, they usually take care of it themselves and don't become infested. On occasion, I have to apply Frontline Plus. That usually only happens once or twice a year; I don't keep up with dosing them every 4-6 weeks.
Last time I needed the drugs, I ordered online instead of buying it from the local vet or pet-supply store. I'm not doing that again. I don't know what's different, but the fleas seem to be merely suppressed, and they make a return shortly before the 4-week mark. It may be cheaper per bottle to buy from Pet Meds, but it has turned out to be more expensive because I need a lot more bottles.
Last time I needed the drugs, I ordered online instead of buying it from the local vet or pet-supply store. I'm not doing that again. I don't know what's different, but the fleas seem to be merely suppressed, and they make a return shortly before the 4-week mark. It may be cheaper per bottle to buy from Pet Meds, but it has turned out to be more expensive because I need a lot more bottles.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
