Y’all probably know about this, for the most part, but I thought I’d make an official announcement here:
Marcy and I have purchased a two-flat in Hinton, WV.
Some will recognize this as a good investment, with low costs and relatively strong income. Now’s the time to buy, after all!
Others will see it for what it really is - the first, quiet step toward WV land domination.
There will surely be stories from this new venture, so stay tuned.
Somewhere in the oblivion of my spiritual journey, I have encountered steak seasoning before.
Then, we met again, over french fries at Bethlehem Farm. Very nice.
You should take the next opportunity you have to buy some quality steak seasoning, and you don’t even need to buy any steak! Try steak seasoning on fries (as mentioned above), eggs, pasta served with olive oil, or just about anything which seems to have a “meaty” consistency, even if it’s not meat.
I’ve got a generic brand here with these ingredients: Red pepper, garlic, onion, red and green bell peppers, partially hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oils, citric acid, mustard seed, chili peppers, and other natural flavors.
Yeah, hydrogenated oils aren’t great for you, but how long are you going to live? Personally, I make up for it by drinking a bottle of wine at every meal.
My job description here at SARA is set to change, from administering grants and coordinating home repair projects to homebuyer education and directing what’s called the Family Self-Sufficiency Program (FSS).
With the new job comes the need for education. I like education. I like learning.
But nonprofit education…government sponsored or directed training…tends to be awful. And not at all educational.
The “pre-service orientation” that led up to my term as an AmeriCorps VISTA was, without qualification, the worst week of programming in my life.
Homebuyer education entails an 8 hour class usually taught to groups of 6-12 people, going over nearly every imaginable step in the process of buying and maintaining a home. I’d be the teacher, the homebuyer educator. As the teacher I would reap the benefits of actually having been through that process myself.
To adjust this point to HUD’s terminology, I would be training people to work through the home buying process. Thus, I have to attend a “train the trainer” seminar, where we will work through hands-on activities and improve our presentations through the most effective means of…
What this all means is that we’ll arrive in a generic hotel ballroom, do corny icebreakers (which aren’t so bad) and talk a little bit about the content of the homebuyer class, new tools for teaching…all leading to the grand exercise, getting up in front of a group, or the whole class, and working through one’s presentation.
I hate this stuff. I hate pretending to teach a class composed of other people who also will be teaching the class, because I can’t or won’t go full-throttle into my routine, but then as a result the instructor comes over and says, “Now, that’s alright, but you really want to be enthusiastic about improving your credit score!” or “Don’t forget to ask if anyone has questions.” Because the instructor must have something to say about everyone’s routine.
Then I’ll come back to SARA and my enthusiasm will be scorched by the stuttering and incomplete training I received.
This is “Mr. Chi City” again, previously posted on my blog under, “Oh yeah - Ninja made a pizza!”
But this video is really something. Watch it.
Checking up on the latest posts tonight via Google Reader, I clicked on a new post and promptly looked away to my meal for another bite.
When I stuffed my mouth with pasta, I looked back up only to hear Danny making noise off to the side. So I’m glancing back up at the screen only to glance away pretty quickly, and as a consequence I only see what’s in bold - “U.N. Acquires Nuclear Weapon”
Already turning to look at Danny when this registers, I nearly choke on all that pasta. WHAT?!
I look back in disbelief, reading the fainter excerpt of the first line, “Tremble before the might of this cooperative assembly of appointed representatives,”…Then realized something is up.
So I look up - It’s the Onion. They tried to steal a kid’s father before the kid was even born.
That figures, though, since onions make people cry.
I tutor a student at the high school, and we usually do our work in a room which is also used for things like conflict resolution and peer support groups. Thus, behold: The walls are covered with motivational posters (”Diversity!” “Form good habits!”), and a number of the posters are lists.
One of those, a hand-written list, appears to be designed for the groups who meet in this room. It’s a list of six things, including, “Respect others,” and “You may choose to pass if you so choose.” (Redundancy not my own).
The sixth and last item, I kid you not, reads,
“And remember…Safety is always first!”
I’ve been bragging about the group of guys I play with, and I presume most of you have heard some part of my bragging in the past few weeks. Still, let me say for all:
These guys are cool. I find among them a terrific balance of competition and the ability to keep things in perspective. One example of this is that there has never been a blow-up or tirade. In fact, I’m pretty sure we’ve always been several degrees away from anything like a tirade. Everyone just rolls with the punches.
Another example is that, in the last few weeks, some of the guys’ sons have played. They are as young as 10 years of age, they’re included in the game as often as nearly everyone on the field, and while we’re not quite as physical with them, nobody rolls over for them either. The kids get to earn their yards, something I always appreciated when I was the kid in an adult game.
Today I had a moment which perhaps illustrates the balance of our games, and nevertheless is one of my favorite moments so far.
One of my younger teammates, about 13 years old, and I were running into the end zone for a pass. The ball came to me, and I had to kick into full speed to grab it. This I did, but as soon as I pulled it in, I noticed the 13 year old coming straight at me.
Not wanting to be seen committing boyslaughter by 8 witnesses, a sheriff’s deputy among them, I had to divert my momentum, immediately. As I was coming across from the right, I stuck my leg down hard, then rolled my body over it until I was driving into the ground, head and shoulder first. The kid kept running past me and I landed, feeling the impact but without any pain, and sort of superfluously made sure I was still holding onto the ball (it wouldn’t have mattered, but it happened that fast).
There were many remarks among the guys, who seemed to appreciate what I was trying to avoid. I enjoy the fact that the most spectacular part of that play was an effort not to hurt someone, and I think that’s the general tendency among our group.
22: The LORD said to Moses, 23: “Say to Aaron and his sons, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 24: The LORD bless you and keep you: 25: The LORD make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you: 26: The LORD lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. 27: “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”
I had the privilege of reading this passage yesterday at Mass. It brought me joy.