Quick Takes, Seven of Them

1.  There's a box of leftover Easter chocolate tucked into the shelf above the computer right in front of my face, but I'm not going to eat it.  No, I am not.  I'm doing a cleansing diet right now and trying very hard to be disciplined.  And I've done a pretty good job all week, too, drinking the special "shake" morning and evening and eating a small portion of low-fat meat and vegetables at lunch time.  I have had a cup of coffee in the mornings, though, and indulged in popcorn and a couple pieces of cheese tonight while we watched Inkheart.  But, having gone a little off the reservation, I'm not going to sucker myself into making it worse. I am not going to eat that chocolate. Nope.  I'm pretending it's not there.  Chocolate?  What chocolate?

2.  The weather here has been glorious the last couple of days, if a little chilly in the mornings and windy in the afternoon, but that's typical for Colorado in the spring.  We've had enough rain that the usually dry creekbed a couple miles from our house is running as full as we've ever seen it, which is a blessing.  A high water table is a good sign for our shallow well.  Our lilacs are getting ready to bloom and we're keeping an eye out for all the spring bulbs we planted a couple of weeks ago, but none are up yet.  The only thing really blooming are our baby pink tulips and the grape hyacinths that have naturalized all over our yard and the big purple alliums -- not much yet for making May bouquets for the Blessed Mother.  Hopefully we'll have those lilacs soon! 

3. I mentioned in last week's Quick Takes that Dan had a two-month consulting job that we were looking forward to tiding us over a bit, since his start-up company is not making money yet.  But, unfortunately, it seems the job fell through.  Ah, well.  The Lord giveth; the Lord taketh away.  Blessed be the name of the Lord.  I expect something else will come along.  In the meantime, our savings are holding out ok.  And I got about eight jars of all natural peanut butter on sale the other day.  It's all good.

4.  We've got baby fever around here.  Not only are the children going to be Aunts and Uncles for the first time next fall, but they'll soon be getting a new cousin, as my brother Dave and his wife, Tanya (who live in Georgia) are expecting soon.  It seems strange to be celebrating the births of other family members babies.  Strange, but wonderful!  It was getting a little boring with me being the only one adding to the family tree. It's about time someone else pitched in to help out.  Seriously!

5.   Mother's Day weekend is coming up -- and I haven't heard a peep about any plans.  Does that mean I should assume there aren't any?  Should I rustle something up myself, just in case?  Or is there a chance that someone with influence in my realm will actually read this and get the hint?  Just in case they do -- I would like chicken enchiladas and a nice big salad.   And, since it's going to be Mother's Day and diets do not apply, I have been thinking about no-bake cookies ever since Cathy mentioned them this afternoon.  You know the kind with oatmeal and peanut butter and chocolate?  And put walnuts in at least half of them, if you please.  And cards? I'd love at least six home-made ones, please.  At least one of them has to have flowers and faeries on it.  And I would be ok if one had dinosaurs, as long a they have daisies in their teeth or something.  Oh, and speaking of flowers, I would love a dandelion necklace and bracelet.  And a glass of Guinness.  And that's all. Thank-you.

6.  I haven't listened to a news report for over two weeks. I tried to lisen to Rush Limbaugh one day, but was too busy to pay attention, and it all just didn't seem to matter much.  I like to hear the news about weather events and the victims we need to pray for and if the economy crashes or the grid is blown up, I guess I'd better know about it, but I don't miss the politics and crime news at all.  That's the one thing about getting rid of our TV feed that has really changed my life.  I used to watch the news while I folded laundry, and never missed Glenn Beck, so I at least had a clue what was going on in the world.  Now I find out something only if it's important enough to be mentioned by my blogging friends, or if I happen across it by accident on the internet.  Dan's just as out of the loop as I am, so he can't fill me in and I can't inform him, either.  We're just dumb and happy around here, I guess.  But, I'm not sure it's a bad thing.  

Maybe it's a good thing that the biggest news in my world revolves around my aging parents' health and the solar batteries my brother just bought.  And the most persistent news is about whether or not William is playing nicely with Gabriel and who has a splinter and who's turn it is to catch the chickens and throw them in the pen.  It's not much, any of it, but it's my whole world.  I can't help but wonder if these are the news flashes that heaven watches with more interest, actually.  It's the trillion and one little day-to-day events that make up our world and determine its health in God's eyes, not the big picture stuff that they add to.  I have no control over the big picture, anyway.  But I can take out splinters and break up squabbles and teach children -- and chickens -- to mind their manners.  That I can do.  Who cares what CNN and Fox News are up to?

7.  I really am not going to eat that chocolate.  In case you wondered.  (Really, I'm not.)

*  Lots of fun Quick Take stuff going on at Conversion Diaries today.  Go see!