Caffeine

Well, I didn't think that I was physically hooked on caffeine. Maybe psychologically I needed it every morning, but not so much physiologically. However, as it turns out my head has been reminding me for the past 44 hours and counting that it would like a little caffeine please. I've experienced this caffeine withdrawal headache before, but I usually either have a Coke and it goes away, or take some Excedrin (which has caffeine) to tie me over. My caffeine intake is normally anywhere from 100-200 mg per day, which really isn't all that much, but it feels like I am very much missing something significant in my body right now (well, really just my head). I've read numerous reports about how caffeine is harmless, but it doesn't seem like something so harmless could produce this effect. I admittedly have been more focused on this ridiculous headache for the last few days than I have been on experiencing God through fasting from caffeine. Hopefully it will cease soon.

Happy Mardi Gras!

In the interest of not completely missing Mardi Gras this year, I got festive last night and decided to make a king cake. I took it with me today to the prosthetic clinic that I have been rotating with, and they were pretty intrigued by the crazy, colorful, sugar-laden treat. Unfortunately, there was some cake left over at the end of the day, more specifically the portion in which I had placed the plastic baby. Of course, I do not want my classmates to miss out on the fun, so I made another cake tonight, this one with cherry filling. Hopefully someone will get the baby tomorrow, not that it really matters.

In other news, noting that today was Fat Tuesday and tomorrow will be Ash Wednesday, I have decided to give up caffeine for lent. I just hope that when the going gets tough, this season of lent will be more about experiencing God that about exercising my will power. When I really think I need caffeine, instead of complaining, looking for some other "fix", or tricking myself with decaf coffee and soda, I should meditate on God's provision for me when I think I am in control or able to satisfy my own desires. Check back in 40 days for the verdict.

Dogs and School

Kelsey is getting really bored with school.... even she knows work is not as much fun as play.

The Perfect Pair

Many years ago, my laundry experienced a loss of two socks. I don't know if they were lost at the same time or just sort of close in time, but they were not in the same pair. I eventually noticed that the two remaining socks, both of which had been abandoned by the missing socks, looked lonely. I knew that the lost socks would not return, but the remaining socks were still good socks. And I have inherited from my dad the following philosophy in life: never throw away what you can and might use again (though I don't quite follow the philosophy as strictly as he does). So these socks, one red and one blue, stayed in the drawer. One cold winter's night, or a slightly cool fall night (it doesn't matter), I was searching through my sock drawer for a pair of socks to wear to bed. I always sleep with socks on, and I like to wear socks to sleep in that I don't wear much otherwise, so as not to jeapordize the laundry flow too badly. So on this particular night, I pulled out the one red sock and the one blue sock, and I put them on and went to bed. They were great. From thence forward, I have always kept these socks together, and neither has run away from the other yet. I wear them all the time, and it has become quite natural to me that they are a pair, a match made in heaven. They were meant to be together as far as I'm concerned. One day a year or so ago, a friend of mine was helping me with my laundry, and she couldn't find the matching sock for the red one of this pair. I said, "Oh, that goes with the blue one here," just as though she should have known the connection. It did not occur to me until just then that these socks were in fact a strange pair. You can see for yourself that, though they may be strange, they are happy together. And my feet are happy. Trust me.

Response to God

Here's a little something to ruminate on.

I was praying this morning and was reminded of our options before God in each and every day. The foundation of this simple thought is that God is in our lives whether we like it or not, and He is also in control of our lives, whether we like it or not. So our response can either be to EMBRACE Him, to RESENT Him, or to IGNORE Him. I had to think, which of these am I really doing today? Which is my most common response? Which is yours? I would say for certain that on any given day I am typically either embracing or ignoring. It's not much in my nature to resent. But I would argue that God would consider ignoring Him the most despicable of the three options. I learned this from a book that I have read and re-read called The Journey of Desire. He wants our hearts to be engaged in this world, to be involved and aware and on fire. So if we are embracing Him, great! If we are resenting Him, that's not exactly wonderful, but at least we are honest and not turning our backs to our desires or disappointments. But ignoring God is truly an insult to His existence and a rejection of the cry of our hearts. We were made to be passionate beings! I just needed a little reminder of that today.