It’s Not You It’s Me

The phrase “it’s not you, it’s me” is used a LOT by people who are going to end a relationship with another person. In this type of relationship, the meaning is ambiguous and frustrates the “you” person. It basically means “I don’t want to have a discussion about my feelings or what I feel caused our relationship to fall apart.” It leaves the “you” person feeling helpless as there is nothing they can do or say as they don’t know what the problem is.

That’s the human to human side of it. And as some would unfortunately say … it is what it is.

Today, while driving home, I was thinking about the many times that I say or do something wrong and how my actions reflect poorly on the relationship I have with God.

Lifting my head to speak with Him, I audibly said “It’s not you, it’s me.” It struck me how ironic this phrase was in this instance. Everything I do has an influence for good or bad — whether they are thoughts or actions as thoughts lead to actions. And it’s never something that God did wrong but rather my reaction or lack of reaction to something.

Yet God doesn’t change. My reactions, like a spring season, fluctuate — warm and sunny or drenching with rain. But God is constant.

Yet God doesn’t sever relationships with His people but He does allow them to sever their relationship with Him. And whether they choose to walk away because of lack of interest, lack of familiarity, lack of … well, you name it. He allows them to walk away.

But from God’s lips we will never hear the words “It’s not you, it’s me” because He will never desert anyone who chooses to be safe under His care.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

 

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Asking Why

When asking “why” to God, He sometimes throws questions right back at us …

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?

 On what were its footings set,
or who laid its cornerstone —
while the morning stars sang together
and all the angels shouted for joy?”  Job 38:4-7

Some of the deep questions God asks really have no answers — at least not on this earth. Yet we ask “why” of so many things but especially when things go wrong. In the book of Job, Job thinks he knows the answers but in reality he has no clue. Sometimes things happen and we fail to see any good in it because we have tunnel vision.

“Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades?
Can you loosen Orion’s belt?
Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons
or lead out the bear with its cubs?

Do you know the laws of the heavens?
Can you set up God’s dominion over the earth?

Can you raise your voice to the clouds
and cover yourself with a flood of water?
Do you send the lightning bolts on their way?
Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’?

Who gives the ibis wisdom
or gives the rooster understanding?
Who has the wisdom to count the clouds?
Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens
when the dust becomes hard
and the clods of earth stick together?”  Job 38:31-38

Yeah. Sometimes it just doesn’t pay to ask “why” but accept what is and keep on living.

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Deer Prevention

On a recent stroll through our neighborhood I saw an unusual sight.

Deer Prevention

As I passed the neighbor who was working in this yard, I couldn’t help but go back and ask him “What are you doing?” The discs hanging from ropes around his garden looked, well, unusual.

The neighbor promptly explained that deer have been feeding in his yard for quite awhile and he was tired of it. “Deer are creatures of habit so they will continue to come back to places where they have found something to munch on.” He also explained that deer don’t like to look at their reflections so earlier he had set up posts, hung rope and attached CD’s to them. So far, he has had success keeping deer out of his backyard so now he was trying the same thing in the front yard.

It does look unusual and reminds me of the Fremont neighborhood in Seattle although there I was never surprised by any oddity because it was a usual occurrence. But in Minnesota the people tend to be more, well, normal.

Every day we have deer who walk through our property at dawn and dusk. One time I saw them in my front yard looking for young plants to eat. When I flailed my arms and sternly told them to go away I was greeted with blank faces. Only when I went stepped towards them and made my physical presence more obvious did they choose to run away.

I have tried deer repellant on my plants and bushes but every time it rains it seems like I have to do it all over again. So … this may be another solution.

I guess I’ll be considered one of the “odd” neighbors now but at least I won’t be alone.

 

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McCormick & Schmicks

On a recent trip to Minneapolis to see the Minnesota Orchestra, we had dinner at McCormick & Schmicks. The restaurant is an easy walk from the Orchestra Hall, we got seated immediately and the food was good.

When you first enter the restaurant, the doors you enter look quite impressive with the leaded glass. You might think that you need to dress up but lots of people were in jeans.

McCormick & Schmick's
McCormick & Schmick's Entry

It is a bit noisy though. I’m not sure if it’s because the ceilings are high and the noise bounces back to the floor but if you’re looking for a quiet romantic evening this probably isn’t the place to go to. Although — they do have rooms that close with curtains so perhaps those rooms would be more intimate.

My husband had the Palm Beach Mahi Mahi that came with crab potato hash and sweet corn bisque. He said it was “pretty good.”

Palm Beach Mahi Mahi

I decided to try the Salmon over Pasta that came with a Spinach & Vegetable Orzo and Sundried Tomato Pesto. It was okay. The orzo was greasy and the salmon didn’t taste any better than the one I had made at home that week.

Salmon over Pasta

It wasn’t bad but I guess my expectation was that it should taste better than what I make at home. Is that an unrealistic expectation?

Overall, the dinner was good and its a good place to eat before heading to a concert.

 

 

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The Popcorn Dilemma

It’s pretty weird to have a popcorn dilemma but that’s exactly what I was having. Perhaps my brain wasn’t working as well as it should but I just couldn’t figure out what was going on and was ready to call or email the Jolly Time company for help.

And so it was around the noontime hour that I again placed an individual sized bag of Jolly Time popcorn in the microwave with the same results — a burned bag, burnt popcorn and lots of unpopped kernels.

Burnt Popcorn
Burnt Jolly Time Bag
Unpopped Kernels of Popcorn

It wouldn’t have been so irritating to me except that I had made this my routine lunch — popcorn, a few nuts and a fruit drink. Well, okay — I can already see the irony in all this — nutty and fruity.  (laughing)

I thought perhaps the problem was popping the kernels too long so I used varying times all to no avail. Having gone through a couple of boxes of popcorn now, I decided to wait a day or two to allow myself time to become less irritated.

By the second day I noticed the problem. Could it be?

Microwave Metal Rack

One of the unusual things I noticed when we moved into our house a year ago was that there was a metal rack in the microwave. Normally metal is not supposed to be used in a microwave but this one is specially made for this purpose. I had been setting my popcorn bag directly on the metal rack which was burning the bag, making a hole and thus burning the popcorn. The solution? Placing a small plate under the bag.

Unbelievable! After all the consternation the solution turned out to be quite simple.

Trivial? Not really. We all have little things in life that irritate us and sometimes we just need to put them off to the side, give ourselves “a moment,” and then return to (hopefully) see things in a new light.

I believe God allows us to hit our head on the post a few times before tapping us on the shoulder and saying “How about taking a break?” Miraculously a lot of solutions appear and the small and simple things in life resolve themselves in a more gentle manner.

[amazon_link id=”B000MAK3UA” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Jolly Time Healthy Pop Butter Flavor Microwave Popcorn, 100 Calorie Mini Bags, 10-Count Boxes (Pack of 6)[/amazon_link]

 

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Fargo to Twin Cities

Sometimes driving can become boring, so on a recent trip to the Twin Cities from Fargo, my husband and I decided to take a different route than the usual I94 (Interstate 94).

And so it was that we came across Interstate 10. The route is about 10 miles longer and 30 minutes more to drive but it was well worth it.  We did have to slow down as we went through small towns but most of the time the speed limit, currently at 65, went anywhere from 35 – 55 mph and only for a very short period of time. In addition, there were fewer trucks and traffic which made for a very pleasant drive.

There is one rest area on the way in the town of Frazee which is about 1 hour from Fargo. The rest area is on the left (instead of the right) and was very clean. My husband noticed that the benches (including the picnic tables) were made of granite or perhaps quartz. I wonder how much it cost to put those in as granite can be very expensive.

Frazee Rest Area
Frazee Rest Area Bench
Frazee Picnic Tables

The drive was very scenic with rolling hills and the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) track following the route of the highway. I hadn’t realized that the BNSF is owned by Berkshire Hathaway. Just an interesting tidbit …

Yes, this drive back to the Twin Cities was less stressful than if we had driven back on Interstate 94.

 

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Minnesota Orchestra

My husband and I went to hear the Minnesota Orchestra in Minneapolis last week for the first time. It was also the first time we walked around downtown Minneapolis with its beautiful tall architectural buildings.

Foshay Building

I found this sidewalk sculpture intriguing — I believe the rusted look is natural.

Minneapolis Sidewalk Sculpture

Some of the downtown area reminded me of Spokane, Washington as they had sky bridges going from building to building. I don’t see these too often in the cities I’ve visited.

Minneapolis Downtown Sky Bridge

On the side of one of the buildings we passed was a musical mural that caught my attention as it loomed in spite of everything around it. I wonder who made this mural … anyone know?

Musical Notes Mural
Musical Notes Mural

After dinner, we walked to the Orchestra Hall. It looked a lot smaller on the outside than I expected although I’m not sure why I had any expectations since I don’t frequent orchestra halls very often.

Minnesota Orchestra Hall
Parking Sky Bridge

We arrived a little early so we sat and waited until the pre-symphony performance was over. We could have attended this performance also but chose instead to walk around the downtown area and have dinner. We weren’t the only ones early though. Soon enough we handed in our tickets and went to find our balcony seats on the second floor.

I think we had one of the best seats as we could see everything and everyone and the music sounded great from here. The orchestra hall lighting was not very conducive to picture taking so the couple pictures I did take didn’t turn out very well.

Orchestra Hall
Minnesota Orchestra Hall
Minnesota Orchestra Hall

I was pretty impressed with the inside of the hall and felt happy in my belly. I’m not sure why but I think I smiled throughout the whole performance.

The performance we chose to see was Vanska Conducts Beethoven. The violinist, Jennifer Frautschi, was impressive although sometimes it looked like her arm was tired from holding the violin as she shook it rather vigorously a couple of times between sets.

The music director, Osmo Vanska, was quite spry and his whole body moved with the music as he was directing. I could tell that he has a passion for the work he does as his directing was so intense. What a great job he did! He is now in his ninth season in Minnesota and has led the Orchestra on four major European tours.

One of my favorite pieces that was played was Wheat Dance which is part of a Ballet Suite from Estancia. It made me feel calm. A second piece they played that was quite upbeat and I enjoyed was part of Symphony No. 6 in F major, Opus 68, Pastoral and was called Andante molto moto: Scene by the brook.

My mother-in-law gave us these tickets for Christmas and we are so appreciative that she chose this unique gift. We will have to go back sometime as we thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

 

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Minnesota Spring

Spring in Minnesota is very different than Seattle. At least where I’ve been, I haven’t seen very many azaleas or rhododendrons and one couldn’t walk a block without seeing one of those bushes in Seattle. Part of it, I’m sure, is that our neighborhood is considered “woods” so not much sunlight penetrates the ground.

The pollen count was high the other day and I couldn’t stop sneezing. One “trick” that both Dr. Oz and my doctor recommend to help with handling allergies is to buy a nose saline solution spray and use it in the morning and also at night. It’s worked for me quite well except for that one day.

I enjoy looking at the buds on trees and bushes. New growth is always beautiful even in its early stages.

Tree Bud
Tree Bud

Another thing we don’t see too much of are tulips as the deer eat them up as if they were drinking water. I don’t know why they don’t eat the daffodils though.

Tulips
Tulips

On a recent walk, we spotted an albino (white) squirrel. Apparently there are quite a few towns that “fight” over who has the most or the best looking albino squirrels. I was just happy to have spotted one.

Albino (White) Squirrel

Ahhh … spring.

Lastly, I found an old wasp nest. This thing is huge and I believe it’s from last year as there were no wasps flying to and fro. One of the advantages of being short is that I’m always looking “up” so I see things that my tall husband normally wouldn’t see.

Wasp Nest

It’s a blessing that I am able to enjoy these little snippets of nature even though I have not found an appreciation yet for the bugs of this world.

This morning the news people announced that because we’ve had a few days of colder weather overnight, the mosquitoes have been kept at bay. Whew! That’s another blessing I’m thankful for.

 

 

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Lentil Yogurt Soup

My attempt to make an old favorite of mine, Lentil Spinach Soup, failed miserably due to the problem I had with the brown lentils turning purple. Since I don’t consider myself a chef, nor a basic chef for that matter, I was quite frustrated and wasn’t sure what to do since I had spinach and onions that I had chopped up for my soup that I felt I had to use.

I’m truly not sure what happened next as I normally have trouble cooking unless I have a recipe but a sudden sense of adventure surged up inside me. I took this surge in stride and went to the cupboard to see how I could salvage dinner without calling the pizza restaurant.

Inside the cupboard I found a large bag of unopened red split lentils. Hmmm, I wondered, are all lentils made the same? (The answer is no but I didn’t find that out until my cooking trial was over.)

Masoor Dal Red Split Lentils

This experimental soup was truly and my pulse quickened as I tried to figure out what I was doing not having ventured into the “try it and see” realm of cooking too often.

But I have to say — this soup was great!! I loved the texture and taste. My husband did not like the texture though. For me it felt so soft (can soup feel soft?) — I think the correct cooking term might be “velvety.” Well, try it. It had no hint of the lentils after I completed my experiment.

Ingredients

  • 8 cups of water
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1 bag of spinach or 1 fresh bunch, chopped
  • 4 medium red or Yukon potatoes, diced
  • 2 cups of red lentils, rinsed
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 3/4 cup Greek yogurt

Directions

  1. In a soup pot, add the water, red split lentils and the bay leaves then boil until the lentils are cooked — 20 to 30 minutes approximately
  2. In a skillet, add the oil and heat until bubbly
  3. Add the garlic to the oil and stir for a few seconds then add the onion and cook until they are translucent
  4. Turn your skillet heat to low, add the thyme and basil then stir
  5. In a medium sized pot, add the potatoes and water to just cover the potatoes. Allow the water to boil and cook the potatoes until a fork inserted in the middle of one of the diced cubes comes out soft then set this aside
  6. In the skillet, add half of the chopped spinach and stir until it’s mixed in well with the onion mixture
  7. Add the rest of the spinach and stir
  8. Once the lentils are cooked, lower the heat then add the cooked potatoes (including the water) and add the onion-spinach mixture that’s in the skillet
  9. Stir everything together and let it cook through for about 10 minutes
  10. Add the red wine vinegar to the soup and cook another 5 minutes
  11. When the soup is ready, taste and make sure the seasoning is to your liking, ie does it need more salt, thyme, basil? Let your palette be the judge. If you add more seasoning, allow a few minutes for them to cook through in the pot
  12. Let the soup cool for 10-15 minutes
  13. In a blender, add 1/4 of the soup and some of the yogurt then blend them together
  14. Continue adding soup then yogurt until you have a smooth consistency

As you combine the soup with the yogurt in the blender, use a large bowl to pour the readied soup into.

Once all the soup and yogurt have been combined, transfer the soup back to the pot and serve.

It really was delicious so enjoy!

What I learned:

  • All lentils are not the same as the red split lentils cook quickly and can become mushy which is why I decided to blend the ingredients in a blender
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Chicago Rabbit

It feels odd for me to walk around the inner city of Chicago and see … a rabbit.

Chicago Rabbit

He stood quite still as I took a picture of him and only hopped away as I got a little closer. What are rabbits doing in Chicago, I wonder? If they are pets then this one must have gotten loose. Perhaps someone had a pet, it had too many babies and they just let it go? With busy streets nearby, a hospital, a church, filled parking lots but no parks, it feels odd.

Quite odd. And, it reminds me of a camp song I used to sing …

I Love A Rabbit

I love a rabbit
A crazy, crazy rabbit
Hop, hop, bunny, bunny, hop, hop bunny, bunny
Hop, hop, ho, ho, hop, hop.

He loves carrots
He’s crazy over carrots
Chew, chew, bunny, bunny, chew, chew, bunny, bunny
Chew, chew, ho, ho, chew, chew

When we go to sleep at night
I kiss he and he kiss I
But if he’s been a such and such
He has to sleep in the rabbit hutch

Oh — I love a rabbit
A crazy, crazy rabbit
Hop, hop, bunny, bunny, hop, hop bunny, bunny
Hop, hop, ho, ho, hop, hop

Yeah, ok, maybe I’m the one going crazy!  (laughing) 

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