Hungry

I had to eat the other night but am poor and haven't been able to go grocery shopping for at least two weeks, so I got inventive.  It was a can of Progresso soup, some sliced up sausage I browned first (after finding it in the freezer...wonder how long that was in there), and rice.  Heated up the soup and rice in the microwave (had to add a little water to have enough liquid to cook the rice), then threw in the meat, stirred, let it sit for a bit, still burnt my tongue, but, say, that stuff wasn't half bad!  I will have to keep that in mind and maybe try it again with some different soups.  This one was lentil.  It probably would have been good to use chicken, too.  And it was all free of the plethora of things I can't eat, so bonus!  :-)

Looking at it again now, I'm kinda' hungry for it!

Musical Challenges

I had another new musical challenge today.  I was more nervous this morning than I have been in quite some time.  I wish I knew what it sounded like to the congregation.  For the music I did, there was no accompaniment to be found...so I sang a capella.  Actually, I had the recording playing on my tablet with my hands-free set in my right ear and the lead sheet in front of me for the words.  So, really, I was singing along while the congregation heard only my voice.  I don't know if it was because I had to rely on the technology or because I knew there was no instrument to help mask a mistake, but I was I truly nervous.  I have sung a capella before both alone and in groups.  The song was "Surely Your Salvation is Coming" which is verbatim NKJV of Isaiah 62.  It is beautiful.  I only sang verses 1-5, though because that's all the reading was this morning.  You can find it here if you would like to check it out (the artist's singing of course, not mine): http://www.scripturesongsforworship.com/2012/06/isaiah-62-surely-your-salvation-is.html.  Despite the nerves, I'm glad I was able to do it.  The song was pretty, the modus operandi a first for me, and it was a new challenge which is always good to have once in a while.

Again?!

Technical difficulties again?!  Apparently I can now upload pictures to my blog from anything but my computer.  This is incredibly obnoxious since that's the only place from which I get the pictures for my blog.  I was going to update my blog today with pictures from Dad's party, Christmas, et cetera and some goofy boring stuff, but...foiled again!  Drat!  Drat!  And double drat!

That was so fun!

Today was very busy...and more fun than I usually have on a given day.  It probably wouldn't seem fun to too many people I know, but it was worth being utterly exhausted now.

As is quite usual, I started the morning by running very late getting to church.  (That would not be the fun part.)  Even after the rough start, I am happy to say that, for the rest of the morning, I was having a wonderful time sing, sing, singing!  Two excellent worship experiences in a row with people I enjoy being around is a great way to spend a full morning.

Then, this afternoon, I went to a nearby church for the first of the "spring semester" rehearsals for the Lincoln Lutheran Choir.  I haven't sung music on that level in about 10 years.  It was wonderful!  I am definitely going to enjoy this.  The people seem very nice, the director appropriately eccentric, and the music deliciously challenging.  We will have two concerts in April.  Here's the part where you mark your calendars.  On Saturday, April 20th, the choir performs at Christ Lutheran in Columbus.  The time for that one's not set.  The second concert is in Lincoln on Sunday, April 21st at 3:00 at Grace Lutheran.

But wait!  There's more!  At the rehearsal, I found out about an opportunity to sing in another choir on February 2nd - I don't remember where, but I remember the concert is at 7:00.  It will be one afternoon of rehearsal followed by the concert that evening.  I will certainly keep everyone posted.  We're supposed to get an email with details I would hope soon.

I am almost giddy!  This is my soul food, and I am going to gorge myself.  :-)

Just Saying...

Have you seen the Sears Optical commercial (tried to find the link, but had no luck - must be too new) where Gene (presumably the husband), while his presumed wife is bent over looking at shirts, tells a mannequin "Hey, chief! Eyes on your own paper."  The woman stands up and says, "Gene, that's a mannequin" and walks away.  I'm sorry, but if the man I was with, blind or not, decided to defend my honor like that, I'd say thank you at least...still mock him for being blind, but nonetheless be grateful he thought I was beautiful enough for other men to stare at.  Just saying.

Third Health Update

I've been meaning to post this for a while (since before Christmas anyway), but it's been so busy, I just haven't really had a chance...or taken the time, maybe.

So, the final test results came back shortly before Christmas.  There are complicated chemical things going on that I think I barely understand.  I'll try to keep it simple so it makes as much sense as possible (without getting into all the gory details).

Issue:
Cortisol levels out of whack (that's the chemical that regulates sleepiness...or something like that)
Hormones out of whack
DHEA low (it's what keeps the hormones from being out of whack, and the cortisol being out of whack pulls on it, too)

Attempted Solution:
Every night I rub a cream onto my wrist that is supposed to help with my sleep eventually balancing out the cortisol levels.
Drops of nasty tasting stuff on my tongue every day to help raise the DHEA levels.  That should help the hormones straighten out and help the DHEA not be drained by the wacky cortisol levels.
I'm also supposed to go to bed at a regular time every night...at which I really, really suck.

In March, the tests will be done again to see if all the this-that-and-the-other-thing levels have straightened out.  We'll see what happens.  I think I need a job that has nap time built in.  Yesterday I took an hour and a half nap and it felt good.  Today I fell asleep at work and felt guilty.  So, obviously, nap time at work would alleviate the guilt and bring on the good, right?  :-)

Watch this.

I've been asked a similar question in the past and heard very few people speak a proper answer.  I agree with Governor Huckabee 100%.  You'll see on sites like MSN.com exactly the twisting of words he mentions.  It is disappointing that people jump to accusations and don't seriously listen to the answer.

http://video.foxnews.com/v/2038135300001/