On the Nightstand

I just finished Crazy Love. It's been on the list for over a year. Glad I finally made the time. It's good. It's quick. And it's a lot of what we know, but can never hear enough, and rarely, if ever, grasp.


Only on chapter three, and not as easy to get into as Crazy Love. But there's real meat here. So many assumptions of church-culture long struggled with- the language, the standardized processes, the measure of success- he challenges. He lays it down in a way that is not for the faint of heart. But even when it's hard to hear, it's so good and so right for it to be said. The cynic in me makes me think that the only people that will read this already agree with his thesis, and that would be unfortunate. But still.Glad he took the time to say it. Hope that it has opened a dialogue in the church.

The overwhelming messages I am facing in this season is that being in a sincere relationship with Christ requires a response. It is not enough to believe in a philosophical sense, and leave it at that. And God hates leftovers. HATES them. Don't sacrifice your one eared goat. He wants the first steaming hot helping.

Saving is Worth More than Earning

I am learning. Because earning has a lot of costs- clothing, transportation, childcare, showering more than you want to, etc...
Saving costs time, and a bit of toner and paper, and a couple of copies of the Sunday Journal at the Dollar Store, but in the end, I am learning that conserving is better than burning through to try to make more (money).
Since taking the Dave Ramsey class a year and a half ago, there has been a big shift in how we view money. It's not power and it's not freedom, it is a tool and a resource, and it is not ours.
So should you have an interest in where I am going to find out about awesome deals, here's a list:

Southern Savers
Hip2Save
WS Couponer
Coupon Teacher


This journey into saving-ness has not been without pitfalls- too much convenience food because it is free, not being vigilant about the fine print, not knowing what the "stock up" price is for items and buying at the wrong time, thinking awesome happens all the time, and missing out. But I like learning new things and this one, I am pretty sure, has actually paid off instead of piled up in the corner of room mocking my gross optimism like so many sewing and art supplies.

Once upon a time, Brady and I lived in a cardboard box nailed to the side of a mountain. We had bears and bobcats and mountain lions for neighbors. We were told we would have heat. We were lied to. We spent many a mountain night toting our space heater from living room to bedroom to bathroom. I turned the oven on and opened the door.
It was ugly and it was cold. But somehow, we kept it warm.

Although I might be an indie cliche (but I did not love Garden State), and maybe it's not for you, but Away We Go made me laugh really hard and cry a tiny bit. And so if you want to laugh (attempts to raise the baby's heart rate) and maybe cry (but only at the part where Verona asked Burt if they were f-ups), then add it to your list.

Mad Me(n)

I have spent much of my adolescence/early adulthood espousing the evils of television. Robs you of intelligent thought, tricks you into thinking you have real relationships with imaginary people, creates a sense of entitlement for an unattainable lifestyle, breeds disappointment and despair about reality versus the fantasy lives portrayed by Hollywood actors. The list goes on. I have judged and muttered about parents who let the television raise their children.
I'm not really sure where this sanctimoniousness was born.
But then there was Lost.
And I was (am) hooked.
And then I had Edward. And the time PBS programming buys me. It's priceless. We have our limits around here, but just a little Sid the Science Kid here, some Word Girl there, and the occasional Super Y (Oh.... and Curious George and Clifford and...). It's educational, right? (OK. No, I don't really buy that. But it's treat. For both of us.)
Then Brady brought home the first season of Flight of the Conchords. And I adored those guys. And they did make me feel like I had a couple of really funny friends. Friends whose lives I didn't actually have to get involved in. They just make me laugh, then I can turn them off. No fuss, no muss.
But my current obsession, and it's a rare thing for a TV show to make this list, is Mad Men. There's been a bit of hype. And my curiosity is insatiable. And the library had the first season. And ohmygoodness, I was not disappointed. I love Art History because I need a visual context- truly fascinated with the story of civilization. How we went from living in caves to trading on Wall Street- with pictures.
And this show opened up so much for me, in a historical way. It's personal, too. The generation hits home, in a sense. I was stunned by the gender roles. The family dynamics. The wars. The corruption.
Really, visually and sociologically fascinating. Dark and sad, but sometimes very funny, mostly bittersweet and beautiful.
And also, I just found this on Etsy. I was just lamenting that we finished the first season, and the library doesn't have the second. What is a girl to do? Just buy the second season. That's what you should advise.
(the photo is from the official Mad Men website at amctv.com)