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 is quite comprehensive)...

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 

good food for thought. 

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!