Being Uncomfortable

Since I moved into this house (over 5 years ago) I've often thought about what it means to be a good neighbour. Especially when I see someone new move in I think I really should bake some cookies and welcome them to the neighbourhood. But I've never done it. Although the houses are crammed together we all pretty much stick to ourselves. I only know a couple of my neighbours' names, let alone know what they look like up close! It's pathetic.
So, for the past couple of months I had been planning on baking cookies and taking them to a number of the houses surrounding mine. I obviously have been stalling since it's now the 23rd of December but I finally found suitable containers (everything was sold out when I finally started looking!) and the cookies and candy canes are packed up with a homemade gift tag. I put a simple Christmas greeting on it with our name and house number for those who we've never met.
Time to hand them out... I'll let you know how it goes. I actually suspect that some people will just give me a funny look but I've got to force myself out of my comfort zone if I want to encourage our neighbourhood out of this egocentric trend....

So, I've now handed them out and some of the responses were laughable. I started across the street with a lady that I've met and talked to before. She actually came to my house by accident one day and I told her that I was happy she had so we could have the opportunity to meet. She was really happy to get the box of cookies and off I went to the next house. No one was home so I ventured on to another house where I knew the family. The husband answered the door and asked me what church I was from when I handed him the box. I laughed at him and told him who I was. He was embarrassed and apologized. (Kevin works with him, we've talked face to face for sure and I taught his son piano lessons... no excuses for that one!) I figured it only proved my point that our neighbourhood was much too anti-social that my coming to their door would throw them into disorientating confusion. He was very excited to receive the cookies though and dug right in. I wished him a Merry Christmas and ventured across the street to the house right next door to mine. Our houses are mere feet apart from one another and when we are in our respective back yards it might as well just be one yard! I tell you this because the woman of the house didn't know who I was. *sigh* Once again, my point proved. We are much too inward focused, not seeing beyond our own four walls. I remember hearing a CBC report recently about the lack of respect in our society. The theory was that as we live in larger communities and increase our anonymity we become increasingly rude and self-centered, not worrying about damaging relationships because we feel we'll probably never see them again. I suspect that my community, being very transient, has an increased occurrence of this type of disregard.
Well, I shook my head as I walked down the sidewalk on my way to the next house, a couple down on the opposite side. I knew this was a new family to the neighbourhood so I was looking forward to starting things properly this time and welcoming them. The whole family answered the door and they were bewildered, not quite grasping what I was doing. The husband asked me what I wanted, after I had explained that I wanted to welcome them and wish them a Merry Christmas by giving them some cookies. I don't think his wife spoke English very well and my gesture obviously confused them. He quizzically thanked me and I was on my way. Thankfully the next house was the family that we knew very well and I shared my door to door experiences. We marvelled at the lack of community. I still had two boxes left and decided that I would try to give them away today instead of waiting for those on holidays to return. Across the street I knew someone was home so off I went. This guy was pleasantly but visibly surprised. I think that some people were a little suspicious of me. ;) I had to wait for one family to arrive home after work but I was determined that last box was going to be given away. The woman who answered the door looked a little annoyed and grabbed the box from me as I held it out, saying, "ok". Then I think she started to clue in that this wasn't supposed to be an inconvenience but rather I was just trying to be friendly and wish her a Merry Christmas. She thanked me and I was happy to have delivered all my cookie parcels. I reminded myself that it wouldn't be realistic to have everyone invite me in for coffee and a heart to heart. My motive was to bring a little Christmas cheer and attempt to cultivate a ripple effect of neighbourliness. I'm determined to keep stepping out of my comfort zone, as uncomfortable as it may be at first.

Notes From Facebook

I'm just cleaning up my notes from facebook and thought I'd paste the ones that were more like blog posts here.

Sunday, May 3
I have been thinking a lot lately about lukewarm Christianity and the concept of truth being relative nowadays... our desire to be tolerant, making sure everyone and everything is comfortable... But what are the consequences of a life lived this way? Below is an excerpt from Charles Prices' message this morning on "The Growth of A Disciple": Timothy's Consecration (http://www.livingtruth.ca/pdf/transcriptions/GOD/TGOD-2.pdf) I shout a resounding amen!

"You know I sometimes hear people talk about the cringe factor in the Christian church. I understand what is meant by that but here’s the danger: we try to reduce anything that makes us seem different to the world at large. We want to become so non-offensive, so non-confrontational, so non-different that we end up being non-effective. We’re the same as everybody else; our hobby just happens to be that we go to church on a Sunday. But there is nothing radically different about a Christian.
And sometimes in our desire to communicate with people we so water down and dilute what it means to be a Christian, we sometimes preach a Gospel that is so spineless in its content; all it’s about is just asking Jesus into your heart to go to heaven when you die. Nothing confrontational about that – that’s a fantastic invitation. It doesn’t address the root of man’s alienation from God and the corruptness of the human nature that Christ came to not only forgive us of but to replace with His own nature. There is an offense to the Gospel of Jesus it says several times, and I quote one verse: “They took offense at him” (Matthew 13:57). And did Jesus apologize and say, “Hey, I’m sorry. You guys are getting this wrong. I’m not as bad as you think I am. No, I’m really quite nice actually.” No, they took offense and He never ran after them.
Paul writes in Galatians 5 about the offense of the cross. He writes to the Corinthians about the stumbling block that the Gospel is to both Jews and to Greeks, for different reasons.
He doesn’t say, “Hey, this is a major problem; let’s redefine our Gospel to get the stumbling block out of the content,” because the reality is that people are looking for something different and when God is at work in people’s hearts, they are hungry for something different.
And the danger is we can be too concerned about our reputation and we go through makeovers in our churches to disguise the uniqueness of the Gospel. We are not being soldiers; we’re being wimps.
And he says, “Timothy, don’t be ashamed of the Gospel and don’t be ashamed of me. People don’t have to understand why you do what you do and say what you do, but just keep doing it and God will work through it.”

www.livingtruth.ca

Friday, April 10, 2009
Yesterday I heard this beautiful song by Lenny LeBlanc... (the words in brackets are the ones I couldn't quite make out)

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/all-for-love-lenny-leblanc/561046983/?icid=VIDURVMUS04

ALL FOR LOVE
What would make you turn away (from glory?)
Laying down your life to save the world
giving up Your throne, giving up Your throne
For a crown of thorns

All for love, You gave it all for love
Traded the stars (above?)
All for love, you gave it all for love
every drop of blood, You gave it all for love

King of all, you became a servant
Giving everything to rescue me
Never looking back, never looking back
You embraced the cross

A Savvy Consumer Rant

Back in March I saw the CBC 'Marketplace' episode on the scanner price accuracy code and I took advantage of it again today. I've mentioned it on my facebook page in the past but thought it was worth bringing up again. When an item scans at a higher price than advertised on the shelf you are supposed to get the item free if it's under $10 and if it's over $10 then you are supposed to get $10 off the corrected price. It's true.

After seeing the episode this spring and having an item scan it at the wrong price I decided I would test this code out - what was the worst thing that could happen?! I felt really guilty, as if I was taking advantage of the store but they are supposed to be following this code. And I wondered why I'd never heard about it before watching 'Marketplace'. There's been countless times where items rang in at the wrong price and I've had to go to customer service to have it corrected... but no one ever volunteered to tell me about 'the code' and I certainly was never given the proper discount. No wonder this issue was on the "Busted" segment of the show.

Being brave the first time and testing it out paid off. All I said was that I had seen this show on t.v. about a scanner accuracy code and the cashier knew what I was talking about. She called for someone to verify the price on the shelf and after waiting a few minutes I walked out with a free item. There was no confrontation. I was friendly, she was friendly... no worries. So, now I pay attention and when something doesn't scan at the correct price I jump on it. There have been a couple of times when the customer service folk have looked at me like I had two heads but since I knew that I was right I was persistent (but still friendly). Once they asked a supervisor and were told about the code it all worked out. It's interesting that the cashiers aren't taught this in training. I don't know how old this code is but I worked as a cashier for a number of years and I'm pretty sure this wasn't in any of my training. I actually find this a little shady. As if these stores are hoping to save $$ by just not mentioning it. I guess it all comes down to dollars and cents to them.

It certainly would be nice if we, as consumers, had better choices in where to shop and the products we buy. Instead it's pretty much the same items, imported from countries that have questionable practices (and we often ship the raw materials to them to make these super cheap items and then we buy them back and sell this garbage in our country - oy!) As an aside, I would love to see the buy local movement continue to expand and grow.
So, when these super cheap (as in cheap quality) items with their already inflated prices scan in at the incorrect price I'm more than happy to mention 'the code' and accept the discount.

Marketplace episode link

The scanner price accuracy code

Never Alone

As I began the day this morning I was thinking about how God never leaves me. I realized anew that despite my struggles, despite my weaknesses and the stormy moments in life God will never leave me. He is always with me even when I don't feel His presence. He isn't subject to my emotions and I can't make myself worthy of His love. And I'm sure thankful for that. The group Barlow Girl has a poignant song called "Never Alone" that I love to crank when I'm feeling low.

Never Alone

I waited for you today
But you didn't show
No no no
I needed You today
So where did You go?
You told me to call
Said You'd be there
And though I haven't seen You
Are You still there?

I cried out with no reply
And I can't feel You by my side
So I'll hold tight to what I know
You're here and I'm never alone

And though I cannot see You
And I can't explain why
Such a deep, deep reassurance
You've placed in my life
We cannot separate
'Cause You're part of me
And though You're invisible
I'll trust the unseen

We cannot separate
You're part of me
And though You're invisible
I'll trust the unseen

Footprints in the Sand

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there were was only one.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord, "You promised me Lord, that if I followed You, You would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed You the most, have You not been there for me?" The Lord replied, "The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you."

---

Mary Stevenson, 1936

Soy Alfredo

Yep, it's another recipe...
I'm getting back into the mood to return to experimenting with new recipes. I go through phases where cooking healthy food with restrictions (due to both food intolerance and personal choice) is exhausting and overwhelming. And especially after being on holidays and having to be cool with eating 'whatever' I had more days where I didn't feel like putting in the effort. But I'm getting back in the groove and preparing for another big food change soon...
Tonight, Kevin requested Fettucine Alfredo so here's my cow-dairy free version:

1. Bake skinless chicken in the oven with a few cloves of garlic.
2. Meanwhile, melt a couple of tablespoons of Earth Balance "butter" in a saucepan.
3. Add 1/4 cup of flour, stir until it comes together and cook for a couple of minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste.
4. Slowly whisk in organic unflavoured, unsweetened, soy milk (approx 2 cups) - whisking until the sauce thickens - add garlic and a handful of goats milk cheddar.
5. Prepare your favourite pasta and serve chicken and sauce over noodles.

Nesting: To create and settle into a warm and secure refuge.

Kevin and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary on Friday by returning to the place we were married - Banff. Although the weather was very cold (got to -18.8 to be exact), the roads icy and everything covered in snow (pretty just not my first choice of weather for Oct 9th) we had fun reminiscing! Our plans for hiking were changed to driving around to our favourite sites, occasionally hopping out of the truck for a moment to take a picture. It was sure beautiful though and we had a fantastic day.





















We both love the mountains. The majesty of the Rockies reminds us of how powerful and awesome our Creator is. Incredible...













And on the homefront I mentioned in an earlier post that I've been trying to reorganize the house in an attempt to create perfect order (ha!) and I have to admit it's a tough urge to surpress. This week I reupholstered our headboard and made a matching bedskirt to go with our new duvet cover. I think it looks pretty sweet.

And finally, how about some comfort food to round out this post? Tonight we had braised bison short ribs with mashed sweet potatoes and honey, citrus carrots. Braising is a simple way to make meat tender and tasty. All you need are aromatics, meat, braising liquid, a pot with a tight fitting lid and a couple of hours.

Pumpkin Soup

Yum, yum, yum!
Kevin and I recently returned from a trip to the East coast of Canada and on our last night in Charlottetown we had a fabulous 5 course meal at The Selkirk. My favourite course was the first - a pumpkin soup with a pumpkin seed pesto and gnocchi. Mmmmm...
Another culinary highlight of our trip was the PEI Fall Flavours Food Festival where we got the opportunity to meet Chef Michael Smith. It was really cool to meet the guy that I watch on t.v. and whose recipes I use. He is known for encouraging his viewers to cook without a recipe - to see what's in your fridge and pantry and try something new. I'm sure that watching that show has helped me to become more brave over the years, thinking about good combinations and giving it a go... So, that leads me to today. It was a very windy, rainy, chilly fall day and I was craving that pumpkin soup in Charlottetown! I'm tempted to see if I can get the recipe from the chef but today I decided to give it a go and make my own version.

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

1. Find yourself a small pie pumpkin and give it a wash.
2. Cut the pumpkin open, remove the seeds and slice into sections.
3. Place the pumpkin in a baking dish, and drizzle it with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast at 375 for 45-60 minutes.4. Set aside to cool enough that you can easily handle it. Meanwhile, saute a small onion and an apple with a little olive oil until they are soft and have some colour.
5. Remove the skin from the pumpkin and add to the apples and onions. Puree with a hand blender, gradually adding chicken stock to the pan also until the desired consistency is reached.
6. For a super smooth soup, push the pureed soup through a seive - serve with a garnish of roasted pumpkin seeds.


Oct 24 - tonight I made some whole wheat pumpkin gnocchi and a pumpkin seed pesto to get a little closer to the Charlottetown version we had. The end result is pictured at the top of this post. For a good gnocchi recipe follow steps 1-4 from this link.






The pumpkin seed pesto is a quick flavour booster. Throw a handful of pumpkin seeds, a couple of cloves of garlic, some fresh sage and parsley into a food processor, adding enough olive oil to bring it together as you pulse the food pro.