Day the 106th

Tomorrow is...WEIGH-IN WEDNESDAY. Hope you'll be here with me to see what's goin' on! and of course, I hope that Bagels-R-Weltha haven't made me show up big on the scales...we will see...

Had some baba ghanoush from Helen of Troy for dinner last night, and boy, was it good. And it was devoured on top of warm, soft pita bread and washed down with Blackberry-Jasmine Tea from Old School Bagel Cafe. Yes, nummy-licious it was.

And this morning, I just had to have a couple of spoonfuls of cashew butter. Honestly, honestly, it's good. Just ask yourself, if you're hesitant to buy some, if you like cashews. If the answer is "yes", you'll like cashew butter. I prefer the "raw" variety and am convinced it's better for you.

Lunch today will be the ubiquitous work salad bar, but hey! I like it, it's good for me, and it's cheap. Yesterday, we had tiny little corn, and cherry tomatoes, and hard-boiled eggs and mushrooms and really good lettuce (think "field greens") and raw spinach and...coleslaw. I love it. Love. It.

A thought for today...my attitude is everything. I came to realize this as a member of the Choir of St. Jerome's. I went through a stage griping about the fact that I didn't "get" to sing solos--and honestly, why would I care? I mean, why am I in choir--to show off? because it's "fun"? Well, yes it's fun, but it's really a chance for me to serve my church and serve God. I am not a solo voice--I'm first alto-second soprano sort of person. I add warmth and depth--and I have a fairly good voice, but I really don't want to sing solos--and that's really not what I do best for the Choir.

I think it's pretty much the same all over. If I look at work as a pain and nitpick over every little thing that I don't "like," then I'm pretty much a jerk and a pain to be around. If I look for the things that are right--and here we go--have the Serenity Prayer attitude--courage to change what I can, serenity to accept what I can't change, and wisdom to know the difference...my life and the lives of others are much happier.

If I whine about what I "can't" eat, then...I'm a jerk and a pain. Honestly, do you know people like that? Whether it's an issue of losing weight or doctor's orders or whatever, they have to spell out in painful detail what they cannot eat and what they must eat...like anyone cares? My feeling is this: eat what you're served unless you really can't eat it--try to act like it's an issue of "full" or whatever, and only talk about what you "can't" eat if you are forced to. And be a good host--the good host never presses anything on people who say, "No." But back to what I can't eat--I tell people all the time that I can eat anything I want and drink anything I want. However, I choose to eat certain things and not others because no one knows what works well with my body like I do, and I enjoy feeling good and happy. And this is only when I am pressed about it. Otherwise, I keep my yap shut.

Whoa! I just read that, but one of the things most of us (I really include myself) have to master is just keeping our mouths shut--food or talk.

Honestly, I am so grateful to live in the US. I don't mean that other nations aren't great because they are. But I look at the difficulties and troubles other countries experience, and I am happy to be here. Life really is easy here--and I think I will end today with some things I am indeed grateful for!

1. It's easy to find a variety of food. I mean, I can pretty much find whatever it is that I want and need to eat. That's huge.
2. Reliable, safe drinking water. Add to this that I have a Britta pitcher and am going to buy a big Britta for at home--hey! This is a great thing. Too many places in the world do not have safe drinking water.
3. The electricity is reliable. SO reliable in fact that we are always shocked out of our gourds when the power is off. Hmmmmm...let this be a lesson. Some places experience a great deal of the power being off.
4. I feel safe. I mean, I feel safe physically and I feel safe from the government. I know that some people enjoy acting like Barack Obama is the spawn of Adolf Hitler and the Anti-Christ, but I don't fear being thrown into prison without benefit of the writ of habeas corpus. This is an incredible right.
5. As a Christian, I don't fear persecution from my government for my beliefs. Yes, this matters. Sometimes people act goofy because I'm a believing Christian--that's their choice, but they aren't allowed to hurt me or use hate speech against me.

All right...spoiler! Soap box rising under my feet, but I think it's time for all of us to simply grow up and stop griping about every little thing. Yes, I think we must address injustice and wickedness wherever we see it, but the spoiled-brat attitude of too many US citizens is something I want to avoid. I want to be grateful for the good in my life, and work hard to eliminate those things that are wrong in the world--and realize that life isn't perfect or created to make me "happy" all the time!

And there you have it!

Independently,

Weltha