Things of late

I just got back from a lovely rendezvous at Caribou Coffee with my dear friend Stephanie. So, so good to see her shiny, sweet face, (and her beautiful engagement bling!), if only for a brief cup o' tea. It was our beloved tea-time, but with 2/3ish of the members unaccounted for--so a bit bittersweet. Everybody's growing up, graduating, going to grad school, getting married, moving away. Hm. Life comes at you fast. Make sure you're wearing clean underwear.

So, I a few books ago, I read a book entitled The Help by Kathryn Stockett and it was very, very good and a definite recommended read from me, your very own, personal, stand-in librarian. Right now it's #2 on the NY Times Bestsellers list. And it deserves that spot, quite rightly. Set in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s, The Help, is about the relationships and struggles between the white, punctilious (eh? eh?) "Junior Leaguer"-type women and their families and the black maids. The narrator and main character is Skeeter Phelan who incidentally wants to become a writer and is trying to make her big break by writing about the lives, experiences and stories of the black women who spend their lives cleaning up after the white women and raising their children. Hilarious, poignant, and thought provoking, this book will make you kiss your bedtime good-bye just to get to the next chapter. Read it. There will be a test.

This past week many Christians observed Ash Wednesday, the first day of the season of Lent, the 40 days (give or take a few) leading up to Easter Sunday. The 40 days are supposed to represent the 40 days Jesus spent being tempted by Satan in the desert. Traditionally, Lent is a period of time during which the Christian prepares him or herself for Holy Week (the week leading up to Easter) through prayer, self-denial, the giving of offerings, etc. Lots of people give things up like chocolate, caffeine, Facebook, etc. but it's important to remember that a Lenten resolve is not a New Year's resolution. Staying away from fried foods won't bring anyone closer to Jesus if we don't look to Him for help when it's hard and grace when we fail. The idea should be that whatever we give up or refrain from, our focus is on the Lord and how he was tempted in every way and never once faltered. Our hearts should be thankful that he was the perfect sacrifice to atone for our complete and total depravity and imperfection. My prayer is that we would all know our deep and serious need for the love of our Heavenly Father, the hope of and relationship with Jesus, and the sweet friendship of the Holy Spirit. Really, that is all He wants from us. More than He wants you to kick that nicotine habit, he wants you to know that He loves you! He really, really, really, really, really, really loves you. And that is why He was tempted and triumphed, and crucified and triumphed. Can I get an "Amen" up in herrrr'?

Welp, we're gearing up for 24 tonight. Is Dana Walsh as dumb-dumb as I think she is?? Are they going to find the nuclear rods??? Shuuuucks, I don't know!! Andrew is currently fiddling with some science project--materials: paint stirrers, rubber tubing, power drill. No idea. The dishwasher is running--albeit altogether too loudly--but it's running. We've had Sloppy Joes for dinner the last few nights--last week I made rubbery baked chicken and burned broccoli, (our whole apartment smelled like charred farts), so obviously you can imagine my enthusiasm to make up for that egregious fiasco of a meal.

True story.