Cancelled

I tried the online blogging thing, just isn't worth the attention. it'll be canceled soon enough.

18 Mar 2009

I'm finished with Winter quarter. Almost thought I wouldn't make it, but I pray to God that I made decent grades. Next quarter will only be two classes, 8 credits, and I'll be upping my hours at work. I'll also have to take the practice FE exam (electrical engineering certification) and find a job for after graduation. Thankfully, all of that is also in God's hands. Now, I can get back to fun reading - the Illiad! Not being sarcastic, I love the story. I've also decided that I want to take up some dance lessons. I'm joining my roommate for Lindy Hop 1 at Century Ballroom. I'm getting pretty excited for what's coming!

11 March 2009

I'm one week from being finished with my last, difficult quarter of college! Now, I still have one easy one left before graduating mid-June, but 8 credits v. 18 ... not gonna be hard.

Also tonight I experimented with cooking salmon. I was never taught how to cook anything when I was growing up, so its still kinda new. Since I've been out on my own, being influenced by my peers, working in a kitchen, and generally wanting to eat healthier, I've taken up cooking on my own. Actually, I don't have that many peers who cook much, which is why I just experimented with making salmon. In my eyes it was a success. I believe in not trying to tackle too much at once, or making it perfect the first time, so I used basic seasonings. It turned out tasting pretty good, but a tad overcooked. All I used was prepackaged seafood seasoning, lemon juice and garlic powder, then pan-fried it in butter on the stovetop and served over a bed of Jasmine rice from Trader Joe's. It did turn out to be pretty good, I just need to adjust the seasonings and cooking time. I certainly didn't use the most quality ingredients - though the salmon was a fresh Atlantic Salmon fillet on sale at QFC ($4.99/lb down from 8.99!), but next time I'll try mashing my own garlic, and maybe try creating my own seasoning. Still, I have the seafood seasoning, so I might just use that up too.

Oh, you might be wondering, "is he still on that diet listed below?" yes, but it's not exactly the same. Eggs have a high amount of cholesterol, so I subbed that out for tuna, salmon, and black beans. I also realized there was no grain fibers in my diet, so I added high-fiber, low-sugar cereal as well. I am still on it, and over the last 2 weeks, I've lost 10 lbs. I'm still going strong too! My urge to eat large portions, and to eat fatty, greasy, or sugary foods has declined a lot; and that's making it easier to keep this diet going. But I'll also admit, I'm not eating as much of the broccoli as I should.

That's it for now.

Diet and Health

So, anyone who's ever been overweight, or downright fat, knows what I'm talking about. We've all tried to diet. I know I've tried! So many times to practice a good diet and exercise, but for some reason it never worked. i think, maybe, I finally found something that'll work for me. After much meditation, and talking with a counselor and close friends, (it's taken me a while but) I've come to the conclusion that my downfall is that I believe food is a means to pleasure, stress release, relaxation, and a cure for boredom - none of which is the *reason* for food. Now, food can accomplish those things, as I've found out, but food exists to nourish and maintain our bodies. It is a blessing from God that food brings pleasure, but it is not the reason for eating.

So here's what I've done. I've committed to (and it just so happened to coincide with Lent) eat only rice, eggs, apples, broccoli, milk, SlimFast, coffee, and water for forty days. The point is to eat what will bring good nourishment, but at the same time, cause me to hate the food I eat. I've been doing it for a week, and so far it all seems to be going to plan. I really don't enjoy very much what I'm eating. I'm tired of it. This is causing me to eat only what I need to when I'm hungry, thereby creating a new habit of eating only when I'm hungry and saying no to eating when I just have an appetite. Once the 40 days are over though, I will continue the diet, but add in new foods, and progress to a more normal diet.

I'm finding it a challenge, when I am stressed or distressed, to not eat for pleasure. I mean, it's really challenging, but I'm glad I'm going through it. It's important that I learn to turn to God in my times of trouble and not some other source that dulls the pain, which I've done many times. So, this particular diet (which I just came up with myself one night) may seem strange, but it has many purposes and is contributing to all areas of health (physical, mental, and spiritual). Pray that I will continue to rely on Holy Spirit for my strength, always drawing strength from Him when I am weak; and that this will really create new habits of health and I won't relapse back into pleasure or stimulus dependence.

Changes

Changes in the circumstances of life are inevitable. Some are expected, some are not. Tonight my church held a meeting for the whole congregation wherein the pastoral staff shared that through much prayer and heartache, our senior pastor would be stepping down to continue following God's call in his life. One of our two associate pastors received a similar call to step down. The senior pastor isn't quite sure yet where God is leading him, but the other will be heading to Alabama to attend seminary. Our new head pastor is a man from the States, currently pastoring in Edinburgh. Everything lined up so that there could be no mistake this is the will of God, and though I'm excited for the changes that'll come about, I'm also sad to see good friends go. However, it's possible that I'll be leaving Seattle in the near future as well, and I'm afraid that will be a tremendously harder life change.

Getting Personal

So, I have another blog (that's private) so i can journal about things possibly too personal to share with just anyone who cares to read my public blog, but this particular one I just want to throw out there.

Last night (Sunday, 15-Feb '09) I worked my shift at the Boxcar Alehouse as usual till about 11pm or so. I joined some friends playing wii and drinking beer, and we had a good time. Around midnight, I was casually chatting with a guy who I've only known for about a month. it happened very naturally, and I'm not even sure how, but as we were talking this guy started opening up (he'd had a bit to drink, so that helps) and he shared really personal things about his life. Now, I could've broken the conversation and played wii, but for God's sake I wanted to listen to him talk.

I remembered, then, why I took this job, working at a bar, and it has nothing to do with selling booze or being around "sin" or having fun without God (like some people assume or accuse me of). I took this job so I could be among sinners without a Savior, so I could be a beacon of light and truth as Christ calls us to be in the gospels, so maybe - JUST MAYBE - some might be saved. What really matters in life is my salvation, the salvation of others, and being in relationship with God and people. I work at a bar because, in America (and most of the world), that's where hurting people go. That's where the weak and the poor go. That's where desperate, sad, lost, and depressed people go. And they are who Christ challenges us to be a servant to and a bringer of the Good News to!

And that's what I did last night. I listened and I shared my faith with him. I saw him again tonight (at work) and he admitted he had too much to drink last night, but the last thing he remembered was having a deep, meaningful conversation with me. He spoke of it like he hasn't had a mature conversation in years. he told me that he went home before 1am and stayed up till 3-4am thinking about our conversation. he admitted to me (the night before) that he never told anybody some of the stuff he told me, and I just hope that means he trusts me enough to open up again sometime. And if God is willing, this man will be given faith to believe in the gospel message and he will choose to leave behind his hurt and pain, that he so desperately clings to, and find peace, hope, and love. I hope he chooses Christ. I hope he chooses LIFE!

And yes, my personal posts usually are THIS long.

Getting stuff done

I consider myself a procrastinator and a pessimist (obviously I'm a pessimist since I only pointed out that negative things). Point being, I actually did my taxes early this year! got 'em done yesterday. Feels good, since I didn't owe anything but managed to squeak out a tiny +$47 from the fed.

And I finished my homework early today (just now) instead of finishing at 1 or 2 in the morning like usual. I had to skip some classes to do it, but it was worth it. Sometimes I think I'm a good student for going to all my classes regularly, but as long as I turn stuff in and take tests well, is it really necessary? I usually put off my homework, because just listening and learning in class is enough stress and i'm usually sick of the subject by the end. By skipping class, I can just do my homework and study as I go, which is working out better for me since I learn better by processing textbook info than by professors speeding through it. Unfortunately when you have a poor textbook, its a lot harder (see my textbook blog).

As it turns out though, skipping class once or twice a week is contributing to greater health and productivity, so why should I make myself go so i can feel like a good student.

Now, if I can just get my power supplies to work for my senior design ...