I was e-mailing with a friend today, and we were talking about evangelism.  More specifically, we were talking about the drive-by variation, where well-meaning Christians approach total strangers with the gospel, usually in the form of a little tract or booklet.

I’ll just say it up front: I’m not a huge fan of the drive-by Bible bomb drop off.  I know people come to Christ in this way, and so I’m not going to say there’s no redeeming value in the approach (wow, I just made a pun). But most of the time, I think it puts people off.  And I’m willing to bet a lot of Christians would be annoyed if it were the Mormons or the JWs doing the drive-by on them.

Anyway, this conversation got me thinking.  At what point do you drop the Bible bomb?

Case in point: My husband and I just bought our first house and moved into a new neighborhood.  We’re literally the new kids on the block–kids, I say, because we’re probably at least 10 and in some cases 20-30 years younger than most people in our neighborhood.  Still, we believe in God and Jesus as His plan for a relationship with mankind (wow–that sounded really textbookish), and so we feel both a desire and obligation to eventually share the gospel with our neighbors.  So, the question looms: when?

I know there’s the standard response of, well, just get to know them and let them see Christ in your life. But then what? I think people break into two camps at this point.  There’s those who feel that once you’ve established a relationship, it’s time to share the gospel.  And I understand why–it’s a dying world!  If we love our neighbors and friends, we want to share Christ with them.  But then there’s others who seem to think hey, if you just “be Jesus” to the world, eventually people are going to see this “light” in you and ask you about it.  I guess I’ve just never seen a real-life example of this happening.  It certainly hasn’t to me, although I’m fully willing to admit this could be because I just haven’t been a great representation of Jesus!

I’ll admit it: if I were one of my neighbors and some young upstart who just moved into my neighborhood came over and asked “would you like to come to church with me?” I’d be freaked out by it.  After all, I don’t know anything about them, or their church for that matter.  And I have my own background and opinions already.

I might be more receptive if they took time to get to know me and build my trust, but still.  I’m trying to think, if I were them, what would make me most comfortable with a spiritual conversation?

I think part of the problem here is the fact that faith/religion is pretty much the only social taboo in our society anymore.  It’s totally socially acceptable to talk about sex, drinking, smoking weed, even politics to an extent, but once someone brings up “God,” or “Jesus,” everyone else starts to squirm.  I guess we shouldn’t  be surprised…Jesus did say this would happen!

But still.  There’s got to be some type of balance between not offending people with the gospel and never mentioning your faith out of fear.

Obviously, I don’t profess to have the answers.  I’m  just throwing this out there, wondering if anyone else has felt the same way?  I can’t really think of too many Bible passages that offer an example I can particularly relate to (although I know the one that immediately comes to mind is the passage in Acts where Paul relates the gospel to the altar of the unknown god.)

If anyone reading this is of a religion other than Christian, or of no religion, I want to pose a question:  Is it always offensive if someone tries to talk with you about faith, or can it be pleasant if done in a respectful way?

I’m interested in hearing people’s thoughts.  Thanks for reading, and I hope people will feel comfortable commenting.

One of the more neurotic things about me is that I love–and I mean LOVE–trying out new cleaning products. I know that’s slightly disturbing, but cleaning is therapeutic for me. If I have a bad day, I take it out on a dirty shower. There are worse things I could do…

Anyway, if you are like me and love cleaning, or aren’t like me and hate it, I have two words for you: Magic Eraser. This little brick of odorless foam can do wonderous things like you’ve never imagined. I HIGHLY recommend stocking up on these if you ever move out of an apartment. We did, and we used it on every wall mark. It gets rid of about every scuff you can imagine, even paint transfer. I even used it on candle soot. We had a candle beneath a picture in our bathroom, and when I removed the picture there was a nice line around the perimeter of where the picture had been. It must have resulted from the candle soot. Well, I used the eraser on it and effortlessly, the soot came right off!

Another thing it does well is clean grease. There was some decent grease build up (I can’t believe this happened in my own kitchen!) on the ventilation hood above our stove. The eraser cut right through it! It also works very well on bathrooms  sinks and showers. The original Magic Eraser is made by Mr. Clean, but grocery stores have made a generic form, which is a little cheaper. I would definitely stock up on a few boxes when they’re on sale. Once you try this magic little white brick, you’ll be hooked forever! (Wow…sounds remarkably as if I’m talking about cocaine.  I’m not, in case you wondered.)

Honestly, when I view Amazon.com, all the advertisements, which I know have been tailored specifically to me, have something to do with food.  It’s always either a cookbook, or cookware.  And for those of you who haven’t already picked up on this fact, I don’t particularly enjoy cooking!Well, today came the ultimate proof of Amazon’s conspiracy to make me fat.  Wanting to view workout DVDs,  I typed in “Denise Austen workout.”    And despite Denise being one of the best-known and bestselling fitness personalities in the business, what does my search return?  An advertisement for a book titled Cookies, by Martha Stewart. Not exactly what I had in mind. 

It’s Tuesday night, just before 9:00, and that usually means one thing: time for a whole hour of an all-new House.  But, tonight there is no new House.  So, I am dedicating this blog to something that I, as a House fan, feel needs to be said.  I miss my old friends Cameron, Chase, and Foreman.  Why don’t we ever see them anymore?!I’ll admit the new people were interesting at first.  Yes, I got caught up in the competition and Survivor-style eliminations. But enough is enough!  I don’t care how funny Kutner is, how “hot” American males think “Thirteen” is, or how…well…I don’t know what exactly Taub is supposed to be yet, but the point is: I DON’T LIKE THE NEW PEOPLE!  All I wanted last week was a few minutes with you, Cameron, and your old hair (WHY did they do that to your hair?  It looked beautiful before!) And I’m sorry for all the times I whined about you, Dr. Chase, and how underdeveloped your character is.  Can you ever forgive me?  And Foreman: you know you’ve always been a favorite of mine.  I think it goes without saying that your absence from my life is felt very keenly.In hopes that–by some impossible miracle–a writer of House might accidentally stumble upon this blog, I want to say something to the writers: ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MINDS?!  You had the most-watched show on television–you had a cast that was working magically!  We bonded with them!  They were our virtual friends!  How could you do this to us–to them?!  Give us back Cameron, Foreman, and Chase!And because I’m already hearing whines about why the writers *had* to change up the cast because the show was too “formulaic,” I want to remind everyone that the formula was WORKING!  That’s why we have formulas–because they work.  I don’t know about you, but when I make mac & cheese, I always do it the same way: boil noodles, drain, add cheese sauce, butter, and milk.  I don’t decide that my mac & cheese has suddenly become “too formulaic” and swap the normal ingredients for raisins, M&M’s, and orange juice.   So, to the writers, the cast, and all the rest of you fans, let me say it one more time:  Bring back Cameron, Chase, and Foreman!  I liked my mac & cheese just the way it was, thank you.

Yep, I irrigated sinuses today.  And yes, it was rather disgusting. But let me start at the beginning…So around Tuesday night of last week, I came down with some sort of winter sickness, some sort of sore throat turned head cold turned sinus infection.  What that really means is a whole lot of yuk has been inconveniently occupying my sinus cavity now for almost a week.  I hate being sick.   I know everyone does, but for us highly social-active folks, being sick is like a prison sentence, like being banished to a small triangular area between the bed, couch, and bathroom.  Call it the triangle of infirmity. And I really hate taking sick days from work.  Not only does it put me behind on my projects, but it makes me admit, “Yep, it’s pretty bad.  I can’t even sit at a desk.”So today I go to the doctor, which I also hate.  I always feel like they view me with suspicion, like they’re secretly thinking, “She’s not really sick…She’s just trying to get Pseudoephedrine so she can use it to make Meth!” So it turns out I have a sinus infection, but the doctor won’t give me any antibiotics.  Instead, I got some nice spiel about how germs are becoming resistant to antibiotics, “so we really can’t prescribe them for sinus infections anymore, and after all, studies have found that sinus infections don’t clear up any faster with antibiotics than without them, yada yada yada.”  And what does Medicine Woman tell me to do?  Try the neti pot.  What is the neti pot, you ask?   Observe… Here we have some poor woman demonstrating the neti pot on Oprah.  How they got her to do this on national television, I will never know.So yes, I did this today in the comfort of my own bathroom.   It’s really rather simple: in one side, out the other.  What happens is you rather unnaturally pour a solution of salt and water into one nostril.  It then fills your sinus cavity (which is the weird feeling part) and then comes out the other side.I will admit that it did make me feel better, for about 30 minutes.  For a few glorious minutes, I did not feel like I had a machete in my forehead.  The relief lasted just long enough to type out this blog entry.  Now my head is back to feeling like it might explode at any moment. So, that being the case, I’m returning now to my triangle of infirmity, until I get up the nerve to once again use the neti pot on my infected sinuses. Lovely.   

I know this is a depressing thing to talk about, but sometimes life really throws something at you that is hard to make sense of.  I remember as a child when I would whine “That’s not fair” about any number of my 10-year-old traumas, my mom would, of course, offer Standard Parent Response #1: “Life’s not fair.”  It really is something we learn early on in life.  Life isn’t fair.  Bad things happen to good people.  Life doesn’t come with any guarantees.

Sometimes the hardest disappointments to deal with, in my opinion, don’t fall into the Big List of D’s: Deaths, Divorces, Disease.  Note, I said the Big D’s aren’t always the hardest to deal with…they are definitely the hardest to get through.  But what do you do with the other disappointments that come up?  Everyone goes through times when they don’t get what they deserve–a raise, a promotion, a job offer, recognition for a job well done.  Maybe your offer on the house of your dreams isn’t accepted.  Or you lose your job, you get dumped, or maybe the guy you thought was really into you turns out to be really into someone else.  People usually aren’t as forgiving about giving you time to deal with these disappointments as they are the “major ones.” But when you pour your heart and soul into something, when you build a dream around a goal and things don’t turn out as planned, it can really hurt.

I hate that feeling of disappointment, and I also hate cliche’s, but one does apply here: time heals all (almost) wounds.  But what do you do in the meantime (you know, the really sucky time)?

I’m no expert on dealing with life’s losses, but I’ve come up with a system that seems to work for me.

Whenever something disappointing happens, I usually declare a mourning period for myself.  Depending on the severity of the disappointment, the mourning period might last an hour, a morning, half a day, or a whole day.   The rule is I can feel sorry for myself for that predetermined amount of time, and then it’s on with life.  If it’s something I’m comfortable talking to people about, I might just tell them, “I’m in mourning until noon because the Ducks just lost the most important game of the season.  I’ll be pleasant again in 2 hours.”

For slightly more severe disappointments, but ones that don’t fall into the 3 D’s, I also try and remember that the first 24 hours are the worst.  Until you can get some rack time to form a barrier between Disappointing Event and Day After Disappointing Event, there’s really no point in trying to be happy.  Just accept that you are going to feel crappy and cancel your evening plans if you really need to.  Sometimes I’ve found that 48 hours is what it really takes to kick it, but unless you’re dealing with a Death, Disease, or Divorce, or something similarly devastating, you need to choose to be happy after the 48-hour point.  I always feel better when I sit down and thank God for the wonderful people and things in my life.  If you have more blessings than disappointments in life, you should have no trouble finding something to be happy about.

Anyway, I had a minor disappointment this week, and I used this little system and it helped me deal.  I thought I would share it with the WOL in hopes that it will help you, too…let me know if it does.

I used to complain about food markup.  But not anymore.  (I’ve heard anecdotally that restaurant food markup is generally around 70 percent, but truthfully I don’t care enough to actually research that figure.  It sounds good to me, so I’m going with it).

Tonight, my husband and I realized we forgot (ever so conveniently) to defrost the turkey carcass in our freezer for the turkey noodle soup I planned to make tonight.  Of course, I immediately identified this as a perfect opportunity to eat out, my favorite alternative to cooking. In light of the rain storm we’ve been blessed with, my mind immediately drifted to warm comfort food–soups, noodly dishes, and the like.  Andrew suggested Italian, and a date night was born.

We both ordered one of the specials, a farfalle pasta dish with shrimp, lobster, plum tomatoes, spinach, and basil.  I think it was around $19 a plate, which sounds a bit steep for pasta, practically the cheapest food ever (although the lobster should account for a few bucks).  But the more I think about it,  the more I am convinced I got a great deal.

Not only did I pay $19 for pasta, but I also got someone else to make it for me, which includes shopping for the food (my least favorite chore) and locating any pricey out-of-season ingredients, like the fresh basil.

The dear chef, bless his heart, also chopped all the smelly garlic, saving my hands from the gross smell.  He also had the fun job of squeezing the lemon juice (also any microscopic cuts or hangnails on my hands from astonishingly acute pain). He also washed all the vegetables (at least I hope he did), which for some reason always stresses me out (did I wash this tomato enough, or will I be paying homage to the porcelain gods later tonight due to a microbe I might have missed?)

And then, when I think of having to boil a lobster alive, well, I’m not PETA activist, but that is one task I’d just rather leave to the professionals.  Crustacean killing is worth at least $5!

Another marvelous thing about buying expensive food? I also buy the cleanup.  I come home and there are no dirty dishes in my sink!  I figure that paying a maid to do dishes and clean the kitchen for half an hour would cost at least $10-15, probably more.

Oh and one of my FAVORITE things about restaurant food is that I don’t have to hunt around for the right plastic container and matching lid to package up my leftovers.  Yes, the dear restaurant workers do that, too.  And sometimes I can even reheat the food in the wonderful disposable container,  maybe even eat out of it, saving me yet another dish to put in the dishwasher.  Now that I think of it, I might even have decent enough aim to launch the empty container into the trash can right here from my couch, without even having to get up!  OK, maybe this is going too far…

I think you get my point by now.  When I go out to a nice restaurant and enjoy an evening out with my hot date, my husband, I’m not just paying $19 for pasta that could’ve been purchased in bulk for 70 cents.  No, I’m paying for a deliciously guilty and calorie-laden experience of laziness, peacefulness, and spare time.  Who wouldn’t trade $19 for that?

One of my favorite things about Christmas is decorating.  Now, usually I am averse to knick knacks and junk of every kind, but at this time of year a Christmas miracle occurs–I magically transform into a snow globe-loving, nutcracker-purchasing, ornament-collecting, cinnamon candle-hoarding Christmas fiend!

So, I thought I would share a few strategies I have developed for enjoying the season, and all of its trappings, without letting them totally take over your home.

1. First, don’t buy anything that you don’t absolutely love.  If you are an impulse buyer, try  asking yourself, “Would I still buy this 99 cent ornament if it were 5 dollars?”
2. I remember my parents would fight every year when untangling the Christmas lights. To avoid similar scenarios, there are 2 ways I have stored my lights (and I have been happy with both methods).  You can  coil them (use a twist tie to secure the coil).  Or, you can find a piece of cardboard (flimsy or firm, either will do) and cut some notches on the two long sides about an inch apart.  Then wind the lights through the notches and around the cardboard.
3. When it comes to storing decorations, use plastic storage bins.  I even went all out last year and bought the expensive ornament compartment boxes (after Christmas when they were cheap, of course).   These protect your ornaments and also make them easy to store, since they stack.
4. Keep your house from looking too cluttered by swapping out your normal decorations for seasonal ones.  For example, you could replace wall hangings with stockings, if you have limited wall space.
5. Another thing you should keep in mind is you don’t HAVE to keep Christmas knick knacks you receive as gifts.  (Actually, sometimes these make re-gifts that people really enjoy.)
6.  Next, a few words about keeping broken ornaments.  I understand why people do this.  Sometimes they think they will repair them.  Other times it’s just too hard to throw a sentimental item in the trash.  Here’s a compromise: designate a SMALL box for broken ornaments.  If you pull the box out next year and see the same broken ornaments, then it’s time to toss them.  However, so long as you don’t fill your small box, go ahead and keep a few broken ornaments if they are sentimental (e.g. your child’s first craft ornament) if it will be fun for you to open up the box every year and see them.

I have more organizing ideas, but I don’t know what my woman to man ration is for readership, so I’m not sure how many people will read this!  If you want to hear more organizing ideas, give me a shout and let me know.

Stumped on what to buy for that picky person on your list? How could anyone not like these ideas? Make sure you look at the last one. It’s my favorite (cute and practical).

These are courtesy of Aaron.  Until he gets a blog of his own, I am grateful for the funny material he supplies for use on my blog.

Top Ten Chuck Norris Facts

1.      Chuck Norris’ tears cure cancer. But he is so badass, he has never cried. Ever.

2.      Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.

3.      Chuck Norris is currently suing NBC, claiming Law and Order are trademarked names for his left and right legs.

4.      The chief export of Chuck Norris is pain.

5.      If you can see Chuck Norris, he can see you. If you can’t see Chuck Norris, you may be only seconds away from death.

6.      Chuck Norris has counted to infinity. Twice.

7.      Chuck Norris does not hunt because the word “hunting” implies
the probability of failure. Chuck Norris goes killing.

8.      Chuck Norris doesn’t wash his clothes, he disembowels them.

9.      Chuck Norris is 1/8th Cherokee. This has nothing to do with ancestry–the man ate an Indian.

10.     In fine print on the last page of the Guinness Book of World Records, it notes that all world records are held by Chuck Norris, and those listed in the book are simply the closest anyone else has ever gotten.

11.     There is no chin behind Chuck Norris’ beard. There is only another fist