Thursday, July 11, 2019

Thursday I thought you were Friday


Since tomorrow is a Feast day and we are going to our
far-away church... 
for the Feast of St Peter and Paul... 
today has felt like Friday... 








I went to an impressive Asian grocery store today,
as I will tell you below that I hoped to do ...
(this blog post is written at various times today)...
I am hoping to make chicken sate this weekend and 
thought it was funny to see I could buy the kit... 
instead, I have various ingredients as I want to try a 
recipe from a new-to-me cookbook I recently got! 










I found this salted duck eggs (already cooked) to be fascinating... 
so many cultures and ways to eat things! 











I wrote the following this morning:
Today I have hopes of trying some new things.
First, going back after years of it being here,
(3, 4 years?) an Asian grocery store nearby.
I want to try to make Chicken Sate this Saturday
as we are contemplating buying a grill pan 
soon.... and I want to know if this is the one to get
(our friends lent us their pan, same one 
we are considering). 
***
I have been working, very slowly, on some essays.
One is slowly gaining speed with editing.
I just have so many goals and projects,
and I don't seem to want to give any of them up.
I want to finish my goddaughter's quilt.
I want to keep baking for Christmas 
(hoping to begin MUCH earlier this year).
I want to get various essays written.
My Husband works from home Wednesday,
which means I am doing meals and more busy that day.
I need to do research for my eye issues.
I have an appointment in Philly in less than 1 month, 
August 2nd.  Today I hope to make work of that research need.
I am trying to do at least 30 minutes of exercise a day.
All of it, separately, sounds like no problem but when you add them 
all up, plus an order I want to do for our church bookstore,
and reading I am doing for various writing projects
and this beloved blog which I would never give up.
I am trying to keep up some "spiritual reading" as we call it 
as well... going through a book of letters right now by Elder Sophrony
(if you want to know about him this was recently posted
and today is the day of his death (July 11 1993) which esp to 
Orthodox Christians (such as myself) is a big deal
as it is today and many of us think he will be made a 
Saint one day (this means, simply put, that we feel that he 
gained the goal of what ALL Christian's want: Christ to increase in
ourselves so much that Christ's presence is deeply with them,
through the Holy Spirit, which I think if we consider it,
we know some people who feel, to us, full of the Holy Spirit
and others, also Christians, still on that sanctification road
to acquiring more of the Holy Spirit ... known by the fruits
of the Holy Spirit (love, peace, joy...) ... 
if you think of what God was doing in the early church,
when we read the book of Acts, 
and St Peter's shadow alone being the cause of healing,
you see exactly what we think a Christian Saint is like.
I know a lot of my very dear readers are Christians who are not
Orthodox or Catholic (though I have of course beloved ones 
who are both!) and I would not want to cause confusion or worse, 
which is why I wanted to do that explanation. :) 
Anyway, Elder Sophrony is very much loved and if he is 
made an official Christian Saint one day, 
today would be his day, as usually a Saint's day
is the day of their death. 
***
All this to say, I am trying to accomplish various things and
finish various projects that I am working on.
Well, everything goes slowly.
I know I must be patient. 
***
I have been pondering food/cookbooks/food memoirs 
and wondering if it is worth my writing some essays in this vein,
as it seems that they may be more relatable to more people
than some things I write. 
Trying to discern how I should go. 
It is clear that I love and always have, but perhaps more and more,
everything about a kitchen, cooking and baking.
And I have for years. 
It was the common ground for my closet friend in library school 
(I did not have many Christian friends in grad school,
which was a new experience for me, 
as I grew up going to a Christian Reformed Church, School and Home
and knew very few non-Christians. 
But our world is increasingly non-Christian and the one thing
that I seem to know anything about 
(I am not into much popular culture) is food.
So I am thinking and praying about this. 
I do want to make more steps, in time, in my essay writing
and trying to figure that all out. 
***
Well, I am writing this part of today's post this morning,
it's currently 10:33 AM, and I have a lot to do
so I best get on with it. 
Will try to tell you about my shopping trip to the Asian Grocery store
that I hope to do this afternoon. 
***
I wanted to note that I read this today and found it having a lot of 
and these words on suffering I am still pondering and 
finding to be so enlightening. 
***
Well, it's now nearly 6 PM. 
My Husband is on his way home from NYC.
I did go to the Asian grocery store!
It was a lot of fun!
I stocked up on various noodles (I LOVE noodles)
found bamboo skewers made in Japan,
almost all the ingredients for chicken sate, 
and a plate for serving chicken skewers on,
and a dipping sauce plate (it's a cross between a bowl and a small plate!)
and various spices ... and a quart of milk to bake with
and spoil Cleo with... :) 
The fast ends tomorrow! 
I admit to being relieved. ... I think in part because I am tired 
and it's summer... 
I was really excited to find some Made in Japan plastic 
flippers for my Le Creuset enameled pan... 
metal would ruin it and my wood spatulas for eggs work for everything
but not for fried eggs that are either sunny side up or over-easy,
so I am so thrilled to have these.
***
It is time to prepare dinner! 
I pray each of you are doing well,
and if struggling, that God will give you peace...
may we all be under/within God's mercy and care! 


6 comments:

Granny Marigold said...

What a busy woman you are and an accomplished cook as well. It's so true that a number of different tasks to be done in a day can fill it up fast.
I have 2 shallow bowls (soup plates) in the pattern shown on one of your pictures. They are green with blossoming twigs crossing them. We used them again just this evening for our salads.

Lisa Richards said...

It's felt like Friday all day to me, too! Yes, I tend to have so many things on my bucket list and most of them sit on a shelf while I do the same few things every day. Oh well. It's nice to know you'll never run out of interesting things to choose from! If I'm overwhelmed thinking I'll never get to some things I remind myself that the Word (both written and the Lord Himself) have to be given top spot along with "spiritual" reading, as you say. Then if there's time, other things can be added. I guess we have to make a priority list, eh?

I LOVE watching videos about life in Japan. How they live, street food, convenience store foods, loneliness, etc. YouTube is such a great way to explore other cultures. Your Asian market looks very intriguing. I would have to drive 90 miles to find something similar.

What do you do with your essays? Do you try to get them published or are they just for your own enjoyment?

You inspire me to think about doing a little cooking. I have the Jerusalem Cookbook, which I love just to read and look at pictures! But I might have to try out a recipe and then inflict it on my family! Ha ha!

God's blessings to you and yours, my friend!

Lisa Richards said...

Oh, and I have to confess, I'm not very good at giving the Word top spot in my day. It's a goal I'm always striving for, but I fall far short. I didn't want to sound like I was preaching from the point-of-view of one who has "arrived". ;)

elizabeth said...

Yes, Granny Marigold, I guess I am busy though it does not always feel like it, just when I think of all the moving parts!

Lisa ~ I hear you loud and clear! Both in the need to put God first and the struggle to find the time and do the daily reading of Scripture and such! I am continually trying to be disciplined in this area and am so glad that God is so merciful!!! That is so neat that you watch youtube videos on Japan, that would be so interesting! I don't have the Jerusalem cookbook, if you make something from it, let me know how it is! :) I published some essays a few years ago here on Conciliar Post:

https://conciliarpost.com/author/elizabeth-roosje/

I would like to publish more essays in the future. I am not sure in which form or what focus and that is part of what I am trying to discern.

I appreciate your comments and blog as always, Lisa! :)

GretchenJoanna said...

I love to visit the Asian markets -- I have two close by that I shop at -- and always come home with something interesting to cook or eat right away - like their rice cakes! Amazing varieties of noodles, and gallons of toasted sesame oil...

Visiting the Indian market in DC made me want to go back to the one just a couple of miles from me here; I'm wondering if they have some basmati rice similar to the fluffy stuff my grandson's Indian nanny uses, so different from that grown in California. I was amazed when in India at the many sub-varieties of that one type of rice.

You are always inspiring in your enjoyment of real printed cookbooks! I read a lot of recipes online but I really hate to have to bring my laptop into the kitchen to read a recipe. Just reading cookbooks is often more satisfying than eating the results of the recipes; of course it's all play and no work!!

elizabeth said...

G-J: Oh that is nice! how fun!!!! that is really neat about the Indian rice.... intriguing!!!

Yes, I love reading cookbooks! But then finding a recipe one can do and is super excited about it super satisfying for me! :)