From One Extreme to Another

Yeah, it's another church discussion so you non-church people can tune out if you want. 

This morning, the evil VP came in with her letter that will go into the annual meeting program that everyone in the congregation gets next Sunday.  Though she is no longer on council, because The Brit resigned, she was acting president until last Monday.  So, she gives me this letter and leaves and I read it.  I am immediately concerned about her first sentence which basically says that someone in the congregation recently told her that the council had not done anything all of last year and that they were wrong.  Okay, maybe that person was wrong, but do you really want to start out your letter with an "in your face" comeback to the person who apparently ticked you off?  I have no idea who told her that but it obviously annoyed her.  However, using that information in a letter that the whole congregation is getting?  Totally unprofessional and immature, IMHO.  Thoughts?

Anyway, read on and she goes onto name all the things that were accomplished in 2010, making sure to give everything she was directly involved in plenty of props.  Then she talks about what a fabulous job the music director( and she does) and the pastor have done for the church in 2010.  I guess it should not surprise me that she gave me nothing.  It was like the church only has two employees.  I fumed for awhile.  I know I do not need her praise or approval, but I still worked my butt off for that place last year...and she ignores me as if I never existed there. 

I did call a few wise council people with my concerns about her first sentence however and they agreed it was not a good idea.  So it has now been passed onto the president of council who is my wonderful Papa D.  We'll see what happens.

Then tonight, my new pastor made a home call here.  My mother came over as well and he stayed and chatted and answered all our questions for an hour and a half.  Truly a delightful visit.  At the end of it, he PRAYED with us (remember my last pastor could not even mention God in a conversation!).  Just a great night.  It made the Evil VP crap, and that is precisely what it is, from this morning melt away. 

I  made three weight watchers dishes today.  Whew!  I spent a lot of time in the kitchen!  I did chicken and used a rub under the skin made up of olive oil, cumin, fresh parsley and garlic.  Total yum and only 4 points.  Then I did sweet potato fries from scratch instead of out of a bag.  And lastly, for the pastor's visit, homemade WW's lemon squares.  Totally wonderful and I had to refrain from eating more than one.  But as of this morning, I am down three pounds.  Four more to go to lose all of the ten I gained since October. 

I am working on losing those pounds along with the church that started me gaining them.....

Just Wow

I know that some of you anti-God folks will say this is just a coincidence but I am a firm believer of that quote that said, "Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous." 

So you all know my nightmare that started back in October with being attacked for not conforming to the Pastor fan club.  Then the second church we walked into once we started church shopping almost immediately felt like home.  So we in the process of joining officially; our membership has already been transferred and our new pastor is coming to the house tomorrow night to meet with us and answer any questions before we make it official in front of the congregation.  I told you on Sunday, I was asked to write a lenten devotional, right?  So given everything that happened from my tears and depression over people turning on me for not agreeing and attacking my husband for preferring to work with the kids in the nursery instead of listening to non-planned sermons, guess what verse was assigned to me? 

"He has redeemed my soul from going down to the pit, and my life shall see the light." Job 33:28

And if that doesn't give you little goosebumps, tonight's sermon had to do with not staying in the past; that it is fun to visit sometimes or to grieve after something bad happens, but that God wants us to "Let go" so he can give us a new spirit  Isn't that what I have needed to do?  I have been working on letting go of what happened at the old place and am really doing well with it.  The bitterness is gone and I don't dread going in there anymore.  Sure,  I am still job searching but working there is not unbearable; it would just be nice to cut that tie and only keep ties with the ones who seem interested in keeping ties with me.  With working to put all that behind me, my life has seen new light at my new church.  It is exciting and the pastor is full of  JOY.  I have known a lot of miserable, stagnant Christians in my life and I never wanted to be one of them.  I have never understood the Christians who feel they always have to be serious and reverent all the time because knowing God and Jesus is a joyous thing!  The other interesting thing is that my seemingly new spirit that has come with being in a place that feels right, is now a part of their praise band and their praise band has a name.

THE NEW SPIRIT PRAISE BAND

I just think it is all way cool.

All Work and No Play

Makes me pretty tired!  It was gogogo today!  We got snow and ice last night so this morning before I could leave for work, the walks had to be shoveled and yes when the kids aren't here that is my job.  Then when I got to work, I shoveled there.  I didn't have to, but one of my friends there is who would have to shovel and he is in his late sixties.  So, though I didn't finish it all, I did a pretty good chunk of it for him. He was pleasantly surprised when he came in to find most of it done.  Then it was to Walmart and then to two more stores looking for liver and sugar free rice pudding, which I finally found in the last store.  Home to unload groceries, change for kickboxing, cook two meals (one for tonight and tomorrow's in the crock pot as I have church and rehearsal tomorrow night), vacuum, search for a receipt and just make it out the door in time to go to the Y.  Did my kickboxing class with my GBC and then came home to finally eat and clean up dinner.  Now I am finally finished for the day!

I am so far liking Weight Watchers Points Plus. It's easy and with the calculator, I can actually stand in the grocery store and do calculations to find out how many points any given food is just by inputting a few numbers.  I even found WW single serving ice cream cups in several different flavors for $1 each.  Not too bad and it takes the guess or calculator work out of it, plus when my sweet tooth is acting up, I have something I can grab.  I have not gone over my daily points at all yet but even if I do I get an extra 49 points a week to use if I need them.  Plus my workouts give me extra points which is awesome but I haven't had to use any of those either.  I even come up with solutions for my sandwich today as I like to do turkey ( 1 point for three slices tho I only used two) with the WW cream cheese (2 pts) but I like cranberry sauce with it but did not want to use three points or a 1/4 cup for it, so I just took a tablespoon of the cranberry sauce and mixed it with the cream cheese.  Now, I charged myself a point for that so hopefully that is okay.  I used way less cranberry sauce than I usually would have and got the same yummy flavor.  So thus far, the program is working well.  Sundays will be my weigh in day so stay tuned.

Saga of the Rollin' Stones

So after four hours at the hospital today, we are hopeful that the stones on the left side are broken and we are waiting for them to pass.  The new hospital is really nice though!  I was very impressed.

What bothered me a lot today though was the number of morbidly obese women who came through there.  It just kind of breaks my heart.  I've been one of them (tho not to the extent of most I saw today thankfully) and I just wish I had a way to help them.  One woman, relatively young, maybe early twenties, sat next to my mother.  Her skinny husband/boyfriend came in a bit later and sat across from her.  While I was back with The Brit, the hubby-boyfriend was eating peanut butter cups and offered the wife-girlfriend a pack which she declined.  I found it frustrating.  Here is this young woman with food issues and skinny hubby is offering her crap.  I once had a friend (have not seen her in several years for numerous reasons) and her husband wanted her big...and she was.  Now she has everything from rheumatoid arthritis at 43 years old to fibromyalgia and diabetes. And her husband supports her size (which is fine in a way) and even encourages her to be larger.  Like the fight to be healthy isn't hard enough?  I know you can have any of those diseases without being of a larger stature but I do think that weight complicates things.  I know weight is a battle and I am not judging by any means.  I just feel for these people...I have been these people and according to the medical books, I am probably still these people.  But I do know how much better I feel for exercise.   I cannot advocate for exercise enough.  Do I love going to the gym, working up a sweat, killing one or two hours of my day and then going home and having my knees, which I have abused for years, hurt like the dickens the rest of today?  No, not so much.  Do I love the way I feel on a daily basis because of exercise?  You betcha.  I love not feeling exhausted all day long or having to fight to get myself out of bed in the morning.  I love having energy that lasts all day.  I just wish I was in a position to help people make those first, painful steps.  I say painful because at 315 pounds, it was painful.  Working out was not comfortable in anyway (honestly, it still isn't nor should it be but it is different) but it is about doing what you can do in the moment.  When I started moving after my surgery, it was halfway down a block and back.  And when that got easy, it was another half block and I built on that until I felt competent enough to go to the gym.  It is a process.  I promise you that if you try to jump into exercise with both feet and go at it full force the first time, you are going to fail.  You are going to hurt something or decide it is just too hard. You start where you are and build on that.  One step at a time.  Find one exercise you like.  You like to dance, find a Zumba class.  You like to walk then start doing it.  Most group exercise classes, if the instructors are GOOD will show you different levels of the moves, from beginner to advanced...do not settle for an instructor who does not do that because it will leave you feeling incompetent and stupid.  Do your homework, find what works for you.  Do not be afraid to meet with an instructor ahead of time to discuss any concerns you may have.  They draw a paycheck and you are part of their job.  Take control of your situation and start where you are.  We make time for everything and everyone else in our lives but ourselves when it come to taking care.  Sure we make time to watch television or read a book but what about doing something for our physical health? 

Isn't it time you made time?

Can I Just Tell You...

....how amazing it is to LOVE going to church?  I have not had this feeling in so long and I am still enjoying it immensely.  This morning I sang with the praise band and loved it.  As the last song, we did the same song they ended with Wednesday night where the pastor marched around with the mentally disabled woman and today, he just started a conga line for the song!  So much fun and my friend, E said to my mother "This is the first time I have ever done the conga in church!  I loved it!"  His sermons are also wonderful and I find that 15 minutes is often not enough for me to listen to him.  It is so nice to listen to a prepared sermon!  And a well done sermon!  It is just so nice to be excited about church!  Oh and the church puts out a devotional book for Lent each year and each of the 40 devotions are written by members.  This morning, the music director asked me if I would write one.  Now how does she know I love to write?

The blog is now public again, which is the reason for the name change.  I would prefer certain people not find me, not that they can do anything if they do, so I wanted to make it harder to find.  So we are live again,so you can add it to your Google readers, etc. I was tired of my readers being inconvenienced (having to log on, not being able to add the blog to feeds, not being able to comment, etc).

The Brit goes in for his outpatient stone blasting surgery in the morning so I am not working tomorrow.  Hopefully all will go well and the stones will break!  Say a prayer for success!

Tomorrow I am also starting Weight Watchers.  Not going to the meetings but Strat got me the books and the calculator so I am all set to go.  I just hate counting calories so hopefully this will make life easier and I can finally hit that magic number!  I know I am going to fight with weight the rest of my life; the secret is finding what works the best!

I think that is all I wanted to tell you.  I gave you a Sunday bonus because I didn't blog Friday.  I was still pretty bummed about the death of John Dye; I still shake my head when I think about it.  Actors for me where pretty much him and Rob Lowe.  Sure, there are a few more I like but those two were/are my favorites.  And he was just so young!  Plus on Friday we went to dinner with Strat and her hubby and had a great time.  Really enjoy their company!

Feeling Very Sad

I am proud to say that I was a major fan of "Touched by an Angel". Part of the reason was because of this very cute actor who died today.

John Dye, best known as the angel of death Andrew on Touched By an Angel, has died. He was 47.

The actor died Monday from a heart attack in San Francisco, his brother, Jerre Dye, told The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal.

Born in Mississippi, Dye majored in theater at the University of Memphis. He made his film debut in 1984's Making the Grade, which filmed in the Memphis area, before moving to Los Angeles.

In 1995, he landed the role of Andrew on CBS' Touched By an Angel. Originally a recurring role, Dye was promoted to regular by the third season. He remained on the series until its end in 2003.

"Dear, sweet John Dye, rest in peace," Angel co-star Valerie Bertinelli tweeted.

Dye's other credits include guest spots on Murder, She Wrote and Promised Land, and the films Modern Girls, The Perfect Weapon and Sioux City. His last role was in 2007's Fist of the Warrior.







I am more upset about this than I even want to admit.  He was only three years older than I am!  So, I am rather shocked and a bit grieving over this celebrity I never knew but who came into my home once a week and often times made me cry. 


Okay, in other news, there is still crap going on at the old church as I got the scoop from a very good friend today.  Apparently on Sunday, Pastor Extraordinaire decided to not give the council any notice about installing them during the second service.  He sprung this on the young man who beat out the evil VP at the end of the contemporary service.  When the kids (aka, teens) asked him when during the service he was going to do this, he told them it would be after the sermon.  Now, that is over halfway through the service and these kids had already sat through their normally attended service.  My friend argued with him, as the kids were planning to go to lunch together before several of them had to go to work,but the pastor did not want to budge.  They tried to get him to move the installation to the beginning of the service but he didn't want to do that.  My friend said, "Pastor, we've already been to our church service."  He replied, "It won't kill you to sit through another one and some people don't consider the first service a real service."

Hello?  So the contemporary service is not a real service.  Now, the people who have the opinion that it is not a real service are the majority of the "Bible Study", but that isn't even the problem.  He never should have said that!  My friend is writing a letter to the council addressing this.  Beings The Puppet Master is still on council, he will certainly carry what is said in the letter back to the "Bible Study".  I warned my friend that he was going to have people upset with him and he told me, "Kim, they can bring it.  I don't care.  I am so over this pastor."  So stay tuned....


I went to the praise band rehearsal last night and got there right about the time they were doing communion (There is a Wednesday night contemporary service at 7:00 and the praise band rehearses when it is over.).  I slipped in the back and took a chair up against the wall.  Not many people were there, but as I looked up, I saw my pastor beckoning to me.  Getting up, I walked to the front and he gave me communion saying, "You're never too late, Kim."  My heart warmed. 

Going back to my seat, a lady who is severely mentally disabled motioned for me to come to her and not wanting her to cause a scene, I went to her.  She hugged me and kissed my cheek and I took a seat behind her.  As the praise band played the last song which had to do with marching, this lady really wanted to march!  Her caregiver was trying to keep her in the aisle and the pastor came up and took the woman's hand, assuring her caregiver that it was okay.  He then marched with her once around the sanctuary.

This is the difference between a pastor who is present in the moment and in the lives of his parishioners and one who is just going through the motions. 

Praise Band rehearsal went well and at the end of it, Kim, the music director approached me and asked me what my schedule was like as she would like to do lunch and get to know me and find out a little about my faith journey.  Really?  No one at the old church gave a rat's ass about my faith journey or lack of it at the time all the crap went down.  The differences between these two churches is amazing and I am so glad God led me to this one.

Finally hit the gym today and ran three mile increments (walk a minute, run a minute, constantly increasing the run speed).  It was rough after the two weeks of the sinus infection but I did it.  Go me.

So I Suck

I show myself no mercy when I wimp out on the gym, despite the fact that I am still feeling a bit like dog poo and that was the reason for my bailing today. I went to work, dressed to hit the Y afterward, but as the morning dragged (and dragged and dragged) on, I just started feeling very lethargic and exhausted.  By the time I left work late due to helping someone out with a report, I knew I just wanted to go home and of all things, take a nap.  I so rarely do this, but my body seemed to be begging for it.  So I went to get gas, and then came home and curled up under the blankets with a cat and slept solidly for an hour and twenty minutes. Still felt a little draggy but definitely improved from earlier.

Strat and her hubby have been awesome when it comes to me finding a job!  Not only did Strat speak to her hair stylist about me last week as they are hiring a part time receptionist (interview probably next week) but a lady from the Humane Society came into Mr. Strat's business the other day and he spoke to her about me.  They could not find my application, so I sent it to them again today with interests in three positions.  I have concerns about the latter job of course.  I love animals and I know the shelter has to put animals down that they cannot adopt out and that part would be difficult.  The flip side is getting to work on their behalf. I definitely want to work on finding out more about what the three positions offer. One is a Customer Service Supervisor, one is a Customer Service rep and the last is basically an office admin, which is what I am doing now.  So, huge thanks to the Strats for their support and what tickles me so much is Strat is the daughter of one of the church people who is so upset with me.

Tonight I start with the praise band at the new church so I am both excited and nervous.  The praise band at the old place was one of the highlights of my week. Not only because of my love of singing but also because the people were so much fun.  Not sure about this group yet. I can tell on Sundays they are not the fun-loving group I am used to but maybe that is good or maybe God will use me to lighten them up a bit as it is hard for me to be serious for too long!

The Brit is still hanging in there with his stones. Monday is the day to try to break a few of them up!