I'm watching CNN and I'm a mess...

about people I don't even know, but whose tragic experiences have touched me. I'm simply going to pass along to you a portion of a post written on another blog that I read(see Bruce's blog here).



January 14, 2010
Presbyterian Church (USA) Prayer for Haiti
Sometimes in the face of tragedy and feelings of helplessness, all we can do is pray. Then there is the opportunity to offer our prayers, resources and actions when we, together, can be a divine presence of peace and healing. As the global community rallies around Haiti this day, let us begin the journey. Below is a prayer offered up by a few leaders of the Presbyterian Church (USA) by myself, Linda Valentine, Executive Director of the General Assembly Mission Council and Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly.

We Pray for Haiti

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As the eyes of the world turn to Haiti, let us join our hearts in prayer:

God of compassion
Please watch over the people of Haiti,
And weave out of these terrible happenings
wonders of goodness and grace.
Surround those who have been affected by tragedy
With a sense of your present love,
And hold them in faith.
Though they are lost in grief,
May they find you and be comforted;
Guide us as a church
To find ways of providing assistance
that heals wounds and provides hope
Help us to remember that when one of your children suffer
We all suffer
Through Jesus Christ who was dead, but lives
and rules this world with you. Amen.
(Adapted from Book of Common Worship)

-Bruce Reyes-Chow, Gradye Parsons and Linda Valentine

Happy National Cut Your Energy Costs Day! No, really...

it really is an official day.  I'm not making it up!  So, in honor of National Cut Your Energy Costs Day, I went in search of some practical and easy ideas for doing just that.  And who doesn’t want to save money AND help the environment at the same time?  And you know I want things to be easier!  This is what I found…

·         Have a professional check out your HVAC to make sure it’s working correctly and efficiently.  Also, clean your air filters on a regular basis, which not only increases your HVAC unit’s functional efficiency, but it also improves the air quality in your home.  It wouldn’t hurt to check your insulation, either!

·         Unplug!  Your cell phone, your small kitchen appliances, anything else that you can stand to plug and unplug regularly will help (or try plugging things into a power cord that can easily be switched off).  Appliances that are plugged in still draw a certain amount of power, even when they’re turned off, and in doing so, generate added heat.  This includes turning your computer off at night.

·         Switch out your light bulbs.  I know we’ve talked about this one before, but compact fluorescent bulbs use less energy and generate less heat than incandescent bulbs.

·         Wash more clothes in cold water.  Apparently, a good portion of the energy used to wash clothes is spent on heating the water!

·         Turn off the “dry” option of your dishwasher.  Your dishes will dry on their own, and this cuts the power usage of your dishwasher.  And while we’re at it – if you can dry clothes on a clothesline, think how many trips through the dryer you’d save your clothes – AND your energy bill!

·         Use a manual option vs. an electric one – things like can openers, mixers, etc.

·         Use your blinds or curtains to your advantage.  Open them to let light in for added warmth, or conversely to keep light out, for easier cooling.

See?  Easy, practical, (mostly) cheap AND environmentally responsible!

jean

ps.  My 8 year old just admonished me because I didn't include - "turn things off when you leave the room" which is what I'm always fussing about at my house!  Good to know he's hearing that one!

Carnation Instant Breakfast Bread…

Just to show you that I really am an idiot the hectic eclectic girl, I’m going to tell you a story…

It’s a story about a girl who got an awesome bread cookbook for Christmas, and who was ready to try a recipe RIGHT NOW!  Can you guess who this girl was?  And in my  her excitement and haste to make this recipe, I she somehow missed the fact that it called for POWDERED milk.  AND in my her excitement and haste to make this recipe, I she somehow missed the fact that it called for powdered milk, AFTER I she had already added the water, and when it was too late to somehow slip it into the sponge (where the water went). 

So here’s me this unfortunate girl, searching around the kitchen for something that resembles POWDERED MILK (which was not, of course, in the house)… and then I had an idea (oh, come on – I know you know it’s me!) – I have some Carnation Instant Breakfast in the pantry!  It’s mostly milk, right?  It was even vanilla flavored!  So I added it, instead of the prescribed milk, and voila, BREAD!  It was actually really good – and you couldn’t even tell that I had gone crazy with the instant breakfast!

So take heart!  You, too, can make random substitutions intentional adjustments to your recipes successfully!

Happy Baking!

j