Smokey Minestrone w/ Tortellini and Parsley Pesto

I made a yummy minestrone soup yesterday.  I used The Food 52 Cookbook but you can find it on the website here.  I totally reccomend it!  Really filling but not a heavy soup. Yum!  I made it according to the recipe but, since I’m not super excited about kale or zucchini, I subbed in spinach and used extra carrots.  Once all the veggies are sliced it comes together pretty quickly.  Just watch out when you squish the tomatoes!  I was a little over zealous and got tomatoe pulp/juice all over my stove and shirt.

Sunday Musings (warning: long post)

It has been a Sunday of action and laziness.  I shall recount both parts in a moment… just want to start by warning that I will be writing on religion (mine specifically) after all the random silly musings and if religion isn’t your thing you should stop reading before I get there.  And now for the action..

I have been surprisingly productive today- went to the 9 am service for church, made a new eye pillow for myself, resewed the edging of a favorite childhood blanket, did laundry, and cleaned out my cookbook bookshelf (Why yes, I do have a whole bookshelf devoted to cookbooks.  I love to read them like books.  You can learn about the origins of certain dishes, how to cut up leeks, and of course, enjoy all the yummy pictures of food.  Not to mention all the recipes I will someday bake/cook).  I am not altogether satisfied with the outcome of my cleaning as I still can’t fit all my cookbooks on the shelves but that may be a pipe-dream to begin with.

As for the sewing, I am just so proud to be able to do stuff with my awesome sewing machine (this one).  Sewing makes me feel very domestic and powerful.  Look at me making this thing!  Look at how I am in charge of making it look however I want!  You will sew this curvy line now!  We will sew backwards now!  This dialogue is empowering, as opposed to the one I have in my head while I knit; Look at me finish this row without messing up!  I hope I am reading this knitting chart right!  You will please, maybe, hopefully do what I want yarn!

So after all that action I have been lazily sitting on the couch reading Agatha Christie, drinking chai tea while listening to music (currently Love Child by Diana Ross & the Supremes, go watch it, it’s awesome).  I should mention that one of my cats (Isis) is asleep by my feet on top of a pile of clean socks and and shirts.  Just keepin’ it real.

And now for the religiony bit of my musings today.  This is where some of you (see how I imagine lots of people reading my blog? ha!) will want to leave.

Today in church we talked about tithing.  Tithing has always made me feel a little uncomfortable.  I know it is something the bible makes clear is required of us.  If you tithe, God will bless you.  If you don’t, you run the risk of being smote down by a fiery column.  Ok, maybe not that last part but it is something we are supposed to do.  I am not so good with giving my money away on faith.  I am not the best budget-er and, while not destitute, don’t have much extra money.  So promising a specific amount every month to my church makes me feel extremely nervous.  Not because I don’t trust my church, just because I worry about having money for regular bills much less for God.

This was not my first time to the tithing sermon.  I grew up in the church, was baptized as a baby and again at 17 yrs. when it was a conscious choice, and know what is expected of me as a Christian.  But this morning was the first time I actually felt a compulsion to follow through.  Don’t get me wrong, I have given for offerings but, as was pointed out by my lovely friend Elizabeth, an offering is not a tithe.  A tithe is a steady thing every month/year and, by definition, is 10% of your income.  So there I was listening to the sermon when I had that feeling… the one where you are suddenly convinced giving 10% to the church is a good idea and something you will be doing, despite the fact that your head (and bank account) is saying this is not a good idea.  I believe in that still small voice of God.  I’ve heard/felt it before and I think this is one of those times.  Silly to some people, but it has always led to good things for me.  All of which is to say, I will be tithing (slowly working up to 10%) starting the end of this month.  I can only hope one of the blessings to come out of this decision will be a financially stable boyfriend. 

Beginning the blogging adventure

Well, here goes….

I shall begin with a list of incredibly exciting goals I made for 2012.  They aren’t resolutions because resolutions make me feel guilty as they are almost always abandoned by the middle of March.  Perhaps that is another reason for the saying “Beware the Ides of March”?  Never mind about Caesar’s death scene, it’s all about the sad abandoned resolutions littering the landscapes of our lives.  Ooo, apparently my blog will be philosophical as well as incredibly funny and interesting.  Anywho, here is my list:

1. Pay for car-behind-me’s order at Starbucks (ha, already did this!)
2. Continue to go to Bootcamp  (important, required for fitting into clothes)
3. Get more involved with/at church
4. See the Grand Canyon  (shameful i haven’t yet, but I blame my friend Ally)
5. Camp/hike more
6. Make a quilt  (i’m thinking a jelly roll quilt)
7. Knit a lace shawl
8. Write a fan letter  (never did this as a child
9. Try out blogging (ha, doing this right now!)
10. Knit a pair of socks
11. Read over 100 books this year (this is a gimme goal, will be met no doubt)
12. Be content with who I am and where I am, in life and in location.

So that is it.  The adventure has begun.