It’s a shame isn’t it?

When you catch one of those awful, terrible, no-good, super-nasty, gross and disgusting food bugs and the meal you had last gets the blame – so sad, ne c’est pas? It might be your famous chili recipe or KFC, but whatever was “in there” when it hit, that horrid ugga-bugga, well – you won’t like that food again for a long time, a very long time. It’s the blame game.

I am a grape

So says one of those online quizzes:

You are Grape

You’re adaptable and intelligent. Always one step ahead of the rest, your friends often rely on you to know the answer to any question or help update their resumes. If everyone would just let you write ‘The Rules for Life’ that everyone must follow, the world would be a better place.

You can’t argue with truth. That last sentence pretty much sums it all up.

“Nothing stays in Vegas” – Gretchen Rubin

Probably good to remember that.

#tbt Throwback Thursday

Easter 1970. I actually asked to have my hair fixed like that. My mom’s friends took me along to a beauty shop the day before and they ratted and spray and piled and swirled. It’s all my hair. I had to sleep with toilet paper wrapped around it, haha! I felt like such a mature church lady.  Oh my.

Remember when these trucks delivered potato chips right to your door? No? No one else is that old?

We never had potato chip delivery, but our friends, the Courtneys did! And oh how fun it was to look in the pantry and see several giant cans of potato chips there for the snacking.

Those were the days!

When the chips are down

There is a major non-chip chip craze happening. Potato chips are out. But kale chips are in.  And spinach chips, turnip chips, zucchini chips are all ok. Butternut squash chips, eggplant chips, Brussels sprouts chips, and beet chips are on the acceptable list. And of course apple chips are fine, and carrot fries – not a chip, but who doesn’t love a fry?

But check this out – right now, while the spring radishes are large and well-hydrated and tasty, but not too spicy from the heat of summer, I just found out you can make radish chips – which was actually what got me on the chip train, anyway. I was enjoying a whole bowl full of beautiful red radishes and wondering if anyone in the course of humanity has ever cooked them (I am very sheltered) and OF COURSE they have. Radish Chips. I shall try them soon and report back! CLICK FOR RECIPE

Possible Chip Theft!

Speaking of which  – I just pinned a paint-chip birthday “cake” on Pinterest, but Pinterest has an awful lot of “paint chip” projects that may or may not be using stolen paint chips.  I mean , ok, maybe make yourself a bookmarker with a paint chip from Home Depot once you have chosen a color and are finished with it. Maybe even make 6 notecards using them, but when you are covering an entire wall in paint chips – I am thinking you are not buying enough paint to cover that expense. I suspect you only buy the mis-mixed paints on occasion.

And I sincerely hope you’re not ordering paint and returning it to re-buy it cheaper later because that would be way bad! Let us not steal paint chips, people.

We should all give up our shame for Easter

Since Jesus died to set us free from the law of sin and death and everything…don’t ya think?

“Shame derives its power from being unspeakable.”  -Brene Brown

I have been thinking a lot about shame and how it sticks to us like glue and we walk around under the weight of it. And I just wanted to say, to anyone I have ever cursed by saying, “Shame on you,” I do hereby withdraw it and strongly encourage you to be free from it. Really – run like the Dickens, as they say – I take it back, I release you from it. DON’T be ashamed anymore.

As a priest in the kingdom of God, I can pretty much do that.

In fact, let me turn it around. I’ll trade you:

Don’t be ashamed. Be forgiven, if there is something that needs forgiven. You know how, right? “If we confess our sins, He [Jesus] is faithful and just and He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”(1 John 1.9) So – do that simple thing and be forgiven.

Or, don’t be ashamed. Because I was maybe judging you wrongly and made you feel bad when I shouldn’t have. In which case, please be blessed, instead. I approve you, I esteem you now. Better than that, God does. All good things are from Him, so please avail yourself of them and forgive me for making you feel shame or ashamed.

 “Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before–more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle.” Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

 This week’s mission: be shameless.  :)