This whine brought to you by....

mozzarella!

ROFL!  I crack myself up.  (Get it?  Whine and cheese?)  Okay, so maybe it's not that funny.

I'm sick.  Alana brought home a tummy bug that has my stomach rebelling against everything I put in it.  Over the last three days, that amounts to 2 cups apple juice, 27 Saltines, 3 cups of tea, and 2 packets of Cream of Wheat.  On the upside, I've lost three pounds.  Though really, this is not the weight loss plan I'd recommend.

*sigh*  So I'm whiny and bored.  And I really can't be too far from a toilet at any given time.  Not to mention that I don't really want to wear pants.

I'm stuck at home.  Now, there are a dozen things I *could* be doing around here.  It's the end of the first week of school and my house surely shows it.  The laundry is scary, the papers have exploded, and no one is quite sure what's for dinner.

But I'm sick.  And I don't have the energy to care.  Except maybe about dinner (Tristan, what are you making for dinner?).

Thank heaven's the kids are old enough to mostly manage on their own.  And Bruce is trying to be helpful.  And there's always tomorrow or next week when I'm feeling better.  We'll live.

So, instead of playing more stupid Facebook games (anyone wanna be my neighbor on ChefVille?), I thought I'd FINALLY update around here.  There are about a dozen posts I've been meaning to write.  Though I'm sure I've forgotten half of them.

Sit back and enjoy!

Yesterday a Feast; Today a Fast

Yesterday was Mardi Gras/Shrove Tuesday, or the party that precedes Lent. As ya'll know, I give up things for Lent. In many ways, this is my New Year and my time to really work to break bad habits that are getting in the way of my spiritual life, not to mention my life in general. This year, like last, I'm giving up junk food and computer games. That includes games on my phone, where I often get stuck playing solitaire or Angry Birds for hours.

In the place of those time wasters, I'm taking on more writing, reading, and crafting....the things that feed my soul rather than sucking time. I've started a blog to showcase some of my crafts and creative ideas, which is a big leap for me because it's public, unlike this one which is much more private.

Each year, this time allows me a chance to work to break bad habits and, as I yearn for spring and the new life it brings, I feel more appreciative of the things I have. And it always takes a while for those bad habits to creep back in, which is a good thing.

It's funny how knowing you can't have something suddenly makes you want it more. I've had more junk in the last few days than I've eaten in a month! ROFL!

It's Ash Wednesday today. The beginning of Lent, the 40 days (not counting Sundays) before Easter. It's a time for Christians to reflect and prepare for the biggest event of the Christian calendar, Easter. The 40 days is quite Biblical, though there are disageements amongst Biblical scholars as to the absolute truth of the number. Seems, in Biblical times, 40 was a sort of slang for a really long time, like we say "a bazillion," and may or may not have meant exactly *40.* The Jews wandered in the wilderness for 40 years after escaping slavery in Egypt. Jesus went out into the wilderness for 40 days after his baptism, before starting his ministry.

Traditionally Catholics gave up meat and other things during lent, to fast and prepare for the coming Easter events. Over time, that practice has waned, but I think it's an important spiritual discipline so it's one I participate in. This year, I'm giving up junk food, chocolate, soda, and added sugar (yes, I know that soda and chocolate are "junk food" but I'm expanding on my previous years of "just" giving up soda and chocolate...there's a theme here even if I'm the only one who can see it!).

I'm also giving up computer games. So I say goodbye to Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook, after acheiving a score over 400K last week. And I say goodbye to all the fun solitare games and puzzles and so forth on MindJolt through Facebook. Whatever will I do with myself now?

This season is also a time when I get bitten by Spring Fever, despite what the weather is like outside. And Protestants have been pushing the "take on something" rather than the "give up something," so with that in mind, I'm taking on writing and blogging and journaling. I'm saying goodbye to the time-sucking games on this machine and saying hello to yoga and walking and sewing (Easter dresses!) and scrapbooking. I'm turning toward the promised renewal of spring after this winter of rest and hidden growth, hoping that growth will manifest itself outwardly just like the new growth outside.

Things I've Discovered on this Fast

It's day 15 and I've done really well. I haven't cheated, not even ONCE! I'm pretty proud of that. I don't know if I've lost any weight as I haven't stepped on the Wii Fit in a few days, but my jeans are looser, so that's something.

What have I learned?

1. I could never be vegan. I haven't missed meat all that much, but I could not live without cheese!

2. Who knew that the big temptation would be hot wings from Costco, purchased and cooked for the Super Bowl?! Very nearly the death of me.

3. My family LIKES veggies. I know this because they keep stealing the veggie entrees I make for myself and serve as a side dish for them. I make something, thinking there'll be leftovers for me to eat for lunch and the pigs eat my food!

4. I like hummus, in nearly all of it's varieties.

5. I do miss my Pepsi, though.

6. This style of eating takes some effort, and frankly, I'm tired of it! I can't just "grab and go" for breakfast. I have to really think about lunches, and dinner is almost more work than I'm willing to do.

7. Restaurants do have lots of options, if you know where to look. McD's and Burger King, yeah, not so much. But, Cafe Rio has a bean/rice/cheese burrito that I could eat on a whole wheat tortilla and minus the cheese. It was really good. Crown Burger's veggie burger (minus bun) is pretty good, and California Pizza Kitchen has lots of salads that are yummy!

I've even inspired my neighbor, who did do his own Daniel fast. He informed me that he would be refraining from eating both Daniels and lions for 21 days! ROFL! But, he's also, for the month of February, given up his favorite computer game. I'm impressed!

Success!

I made vegetable broth! Without a recipe or much guidance (my cookbook only does meat broths)! But, I winged it (wung it?) and it turned out pretty good! I threw in just about every veggie I had in the fridge, except the cucumbers which somehow didn't seem like a good idea in there.....

Anyway, I put in:
1 onion, chunked
2 potatos
1 large handful of baby carrots
2 small zucchini, chunked
4 stalks of celery
4 cloves of garlic (at least)
12 crimini mushrooms, chunked
1 t salt

I probably had about 8 cups of water in there, maybe more? Then I got it boiling and let it cook for 6 hours or so, covered. And guess what? It's GOOD! Heck, I've had chicken broth turn out weaker than this stuff. Now I'm using some of it to make some veggie rice soup for dinner for me. I really could drink this, just as it is. Of course, I've got a cold and a sore throat, so maybe that's why I want to dump it in a mug, curl up with a book and just veg (with my veg-broth! *giggle*)

Daniel Fast--Day 1

Okay, so I was more enthused about this on Friday than I was today, but so far, it's going well. I had oatmeal with applesauce and cinnamon for breakfast, apples and celery with peanut butter for lunch, plus some veggies, and a big salad for dinner. I was disappointed to discover that I don't like the hummus I bought, so I'll take it to my UMW meeting tomorrow night and feed it to the ladies there! LOL! I also need to tweak the salad dressing I made.....too much balsamic vinegar I think.

Onward to tomorrow!

Daniel Fast

I read about this on one of my message boards, and was intrigued. The title comes from the Biblical book of Daniel, and the idea is to eat the same way that Daniel did. Different websites list different rules, when you get into the specifics, but the basics are all the same. Eat fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes and drink only water. Some sites say that honey is all right and others okay herbal tea. Foods to be "fasted" from include meat, dairy, sugar, caffeine, flour, leavening agents, and all preservatives. Spices are all right, and so are whole grains like brown rice. I suppose wheat flour would be okay, but there isn't much you can do with flour that doesn't have some kind of leavening in it. One site says unleavened bread is fine....others don't.

Do you get the sense that this is supposed to be an individual thing? Yeah, me too. I'm embarking on this fast, starting Monday, for 21 days. I'm going to allow myself to drink black tea with honey, mostly because, if I quit caffeine cold turkey then, by Wednesday, I'll be insane and I'll quit. Maybe I'll try to taper off in time for Lent.

Some may say that I'm not embracing the spirit of the fast. That it's supposed to be about sacrifice and allowing God to work in my life through that sacrifice. I say I'm sacrificing quite a lot, thank you, and God and I are okay with this modification. At least, that's the general sense that I get.

I started with this idea as a way to lose weight, or at least jump start that process. But, the more I've thought about it, and as I shopped for veggies, fruits, hummus, peanut butter without sugar, and other things, I began to hear God's voice. It's interesting how we can start something with one intent and wind up with something totally different, isn't it? I'm curious to see where God will lead me during this fast.

Bruce is on board and is willing to do much of the cooking for he and the kids. I really don't think that will be necessary. I've already thought of ways I can modify the recipes for them to suit this fast. We're having fajitas one night.....I'll just saute the peppers and onions for me, plus some spices and maybe a portabella mushroom or some squash. No problem! We'll see how I feel by the end of the week, however.

The kids, by the way, don't get it and keep giving me this look like I've suddenly grown another head. Shannon is calling it my "vegetarian" fast.

We'll see how it goes. Tomorrow, I'll delve into the Bible some more.