Share Four Somethings - February 2023

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 February is a short month, but it still seems like it went by really fast. I've been really busy, at least here at my screen and keyboard, because I've been participating in the Write 28 Days blogging challenge. I'm even going to try to tie that in as I share Something I Loved, Something I Read, Something I Learned and Something I Ate this month. Right now I'm sipping my cup of coffee as I write, and I hope you have a cup of your favorite beverage to enjoy while you read.

Something Loved

A visit from old friends and hope for new friendships! 

We actually had friends from Canada visit us on their way south on a road trip, and it was so much fun! Oddly, even though this was my husband's high school friend and his wife, the visit may have meant the most to me. Because while my husband interacts with other adult humans at his work, I don't interact with others during the weekdays at all. Well, not in person. So being able to socialize was quite a treat!

We also feel pretty good about the church we've been attending, and are quite sure that it's a good fit and we'll become members. We've been attending Sunday morning services and have been to the midweek dinner and Bible study a couple of times. Last Sunday we stayed for a membership information type meeting, and although we're not going to join right away, we'll probably do it fairly soon. We've met some good people and are hopeful that we'll make some friends as we continue attending and start getting more involved.

Something Read

Interesting articles from here and there:

The Bible Project: 3 Love Stories in the Bible That Help Us Rethink Romance - I always find a lot to ponder in videos, podcasts, and articles from The Bible Project, and this focus on love was no exception.

Jodelights: How Beautiful You Are - This is just one of many Write 28 Days articles from many participants that I enjoyed. I saved this one because I liked the different takes on the symbolism in Song of Songs.

Here are the books I'm currently reading:

In Spotlight and Shadow by Rachel Scott McDaniel

The Cairo Curse by Pepper Basham

Shirley, I Jest: A Storied Life by Cindy Williams

   

I'm really enjoying the two novels, but I wish I'd been able to read them a little quicker. Both are for reviews, and my goal was to have the reviews done by the end of February. That's in a couple of days. I might be able to do it. I also have so many other books that I'd like to read that I don't want to dawdle! The Cindy Williams memoir is not as good as I anticipated. So far it's cute and conversational, and an interesting peek into Williams' early career; it's just not grabbing me as an absolute must-read.

The rest of my reading news is at Just A Second if you want to see what I've recently reviewed and what I have coming up.

Something Learned

I'm learning a lot from all the other bloggers who are participating in the Write 28 Days blogging challenge, and I'm learning a bit more about the writing craft for myself as well. I blog as a hobby and I want to write well and provide interesting and encouraging material for others to read. But at this point I don't feel any particular calling to write a book or even to pursue making money with my writing. I am open to considering that, but it's not a goal for me now. Most of the participants in the challenge are writing devotionals or inspirational material based on the word prompts we've been given. There are some very gifted writers with wonderful and creative insights that I'm following and sharing with!

More practically, I'm learning my way around the Plan to Eat app and website. I mentioned this last month and said I was sampling the free trial version. Well, I figured it was a good price and worth me trying for a full year so I subscribed. I don't use it to plan every single meal, but I'm finding it to be so very useful in consolidating the ingredients lists so I can plan dinners and make it easier to know what specific ingredients I need to buy and combine that list with the staples list of things I buy regularly. Give it a look if you need some help organizing your meal planning and grocery lists! Using my link - Plan to Eat - will get you 20% off your first annual subscription! (And of course, full disclosure - the referral link will earn me a commission on your subscription as well.)

Something On My Plate

This month started out great with some new recipes that we liked. We were big fans of this copycat recipe for Chicken Costoletta (Cheesecake Factory), even though I got it a little darker than I wanted. This recipe went into the rotation as a keeper! 

We love chorizo, so I tried this chorizo skillet that has sweet potatoes and beans and rice and cheese. It sounded outstanding, and it was good, but not actually outstanding. Not quite as flavorful as I'd expected. Will try again, but tweak the seasoning and proportions to take it up a notch. Bam! As Emeril would say.

We are officially at the empty nester stage where we can eat ice cream right out of the container! Who needs dessert bowls?!

We tried a couple of new restaurants and the donuts from the Chinese place brought back some good memories.

We also tried takeout from the local pizza place and it was really good! Little wonder they've been in business for so many years!

Then we got to this past week. And ran into a problem or two. First, my husband had to have some bloodwork and other medical diagnostics done so he spent about half the week fasting. I didn't mind because it saved me planning and cooking meals! I was quite happy to eat cereal for dinner. (I love cereal. Don't judge me.) And right after he was given a clean bill of health and could start eating again, I ran into another problem. A very uncomfortable one. One of my teeth broke. Or a filling broke out of the tooth, to be more accurate. At this point it's not genuinely painful, but it is uncomfortable, and the real problem is that I really can't chew. So I guess I'm on a soft food and liquid diet until I can get to the dentist. That's also a problem (not the pudding, soup, and yogurt diet - I also love pudding, soup, and yogurt) because we don't have a dentist here yet. So I'm a new patient and I'm in a hurry for an appointment. And the tooth broke on a Friday. The dental practice I prefer isn't even open on Fridays. I tried my second choice, which has weekend hours, but they haven't responded to my calls so I've pretty much given up on that. I guess I'll stick to my restrictive diet for the weekend and hope that Monday brings a good response from my first choice dentist.

Believe it or not, "problem" is the Write 28 Days word prompt for today. As I was wondering what to write about, I kept thinking about my dental problem - which is really a minor one in the grand scheme of things - and a little searching brought me to this proverb:

Like a broken tooth or a lame foot

is reliance on the unfaithful in a time of trouble.

~Proverbs 25:19~

Isn't that the truth?! Even though a broken tooth doesn't always hurt, it still prevents me from being able to chew food. I don't have any confidence that I'll be able to eat anything that requires chewing, because the tooth might break again, might start hurting, or even get bits of food stuck in it and that would cause even more problems!

I also have some experience in lameness, with my arthritic knees and ankles, and the resulting pain and instability. I got my left knee replaced and after all the recovery and physical therapy, I'm happy to say that my knees are now in good shape and I have a lot more confidence in their stability. But the flexibility in my knees and ankles is still somewhat limited, and if I found myself in trouble? Like needing to run for some reason? That would be a problem.

I don't know why the second choice dental office didn't return my call, but I'm no longer considering that practice, because I don't feel very confident that they are reliable.

Thankfully, no matter what kind of problems you or I face, we can always rely on God to answer our calls! 

"But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD,

whose confidence is in him."

~Jeremiah 17:7~

I thought it really interesting that in Jeremiah's lamentation, one of the descriptions he uses of God's judgement on Israel is about broken teeth! Now, I don't think God literally broke my tooth to discipline me, but I think it's quite possible that God wants to teach me something as I'm thinking about my discomfort. So look at Jeremiah's declaration just a sentence or two after his complaint about broken teeth:

He has broken my teeth with gravel;

he has trampled me in the dust . . .

I remember my affliction and my wandering,

the bitterness and the gall.

I well remember them and my soul is downcast within me.

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:

Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

~Lamentations 3:16, 19-23~

I hope you aren't facing any big problems today! But whatever problems come your way, big or small, I hope you remember to pray about them and trust God to help you through.

This post will be linked at Overflowing With Thankfulness in the Share Four Somethings link party.

This post will also be linked at the Final Friday link party hosted by Marsha In The Middle.

This post is part of the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge hosted by Anita Ojeda. Find all my posts for the 2023 challenge here: Write Something Somewhere

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