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jadelennoxIf anyone needs a hand to get through this month, let me know. You don’t need to explain, it doesn’t need to be SNAP related in any way. Comments screened. (Not doing friend of a friend stuff, just you, people who read this.)
I will probably make this post private in like a week out of sheer embarrassment so ask soon if you need something.
andrewduckersparoweNovember 4, 2025
READ: Isaiah 38:1-6
Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the
My friend Christine and her husband sat down to dinner at their aunt and uncle’s house. Her aunt had recently been diagnosed with an aggressive cancer. Before anyone started to eat, her uncle asked, “Does anyone have anything to say?” Christine smiled because she knew he meant, “Does anyone want to pray?” He wasn’t a believer in Jesus, but he knew Christine was, so this was his way to invite prayer. Speaking from her heart, she gave thanks to God for His care and requested that He would perform a miracle for her aunt.
King Hezekiah became ill and had something on his heart to say to God after the prophet Isaiah told him he was going to die (Isaiah 38:1). He “wept bitterly” and pleaded, “Remember,
God invites us to pray—whether it’s for an urgent need or to thank Him for something small or significant. He hears our prayers, sees our tears, and will answer according to His plan. Our place is to “walk humbly all [our] years” with Him (v. 15).
— Anne Cetas
What concerns do you have to bring to God? How can you place your trust in Him?
Loving Father, thank You for wanting to hear my heart. I trust that You’re powerful and able to bring about Your good will in my life and in those I love.
Source: Our Daily Bread
erika
ink_13First cooking fail in a while, as I tried to make a chicken stew and have wound up with a merely acceptable soup.
The initial mistake was forgetting to buy a box of stock when out shopping, so I just used water. It's fine, but it could have been better. Second stumble is that it seems I didn't use enough flour, because it didn't thicken as much as I expected. Still served it over some mashed potatoes.
The flavour is okay, not least of all because I used the duck fat I forgot I had in the fridge as my oil, but this lacked the unctuous savoury wallop that I was aiming for.
Oh well, guess I'll have to try again.
althea_valara
Did you know Post-It notes were an accidental invention? A 3M scientist was attempting to create a super-strong adhesive when he accidentally created a weak adhesive instead. This adhesive was low-tack and responded to pressure. For this challenge, I did some experimenting with the weak adhesive on the back of my sticker puzzle (a Take and Make kit from my local library!). I tested to see if I could remove and replace the stickers to perfect their position (I could!).
Team shout out for Nerd Cred: My sticker puzzle is of a decorated skull for “El Dia de los Muertos” (The Day of the Dead). In Final Fantasy XI, there is an infamous quest to unlock your subjob that requires farming three items from monsters, one of which is a Magicked Skull that comes from skeleton enemies.
My family used to vacation in Hayward, WI when I was quite young, and we always brought board games along to play. Two of the games we played were Hungry, Hungry Hippos (which has a red playing board) and Hi-Ho! Cherry-O! (in which you collect red cherries). In honor of these memories, I’ve made a red legwarmer.
wychwoodsenmutSometimes Jazz isn't smooth
andrewduckersparoweNovember 3, 2025
READ: Ephesians 2:12-22
In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. Ephesians 2:21
Andy Goldsworthy’s Grand Rapids Arch sits on the side of a road as if striding alongside travelers. The artist created the eighteen-foot-tall, free-standing arch with thirty-six blocks of Scottish sandstone without using mortar or pins. The ascending angled stones, each one different and cut to fit together, depend on pressure created by a wedge-shaped keystone—the top center stone—to remain perfectly intact. The keystone is essential to holding the structure together, much like a cornerstone.
The sculpture reminded me of how Jesus serves as “the chief cornerstone” of His diverse church (Ephesians 2:20). The gentiles—all non-Jewish people—were once “excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world” (v. 12). Jesus made “the two groups one” and “destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” (v. 14). He created “one new humanity,” and “in one body [reconciled] both of them to God through the cross,” giving them all “access to the Father by one Spirit” (vv. 15-16, 18).
Christ builds us up as a church “in which God lives by his Spirit” (v. 22). He sculpts each unique person, connects us to Him and to each other through Him, and walks with us. The church is joined by Jesus.
— Xochitl Dixon
What hinders you from connecting to Jesus as Messiah, the one who unites the church? How has He helped you connect to His diverse church?
Dear Jesus, please strengthen my connection with You and the members of Your diverse family. Learn more about having a personal relationship with God.
kareila
ink_13Lo, I did wake up quite early (for me) on Friday, and yea, I did make it onto the GO train with plenty of time to spare, thence onto a Burlington Transit bus perfectly timetabled to give just enough time to make it from the train before it departed. And literally to the minute of my appointment, I did walk into the studio of my interior designer, to see what she (and her junior who probably did most of the work) had wrought for first concepts.
And I gotta say, aesthetically, they pretty much nailed it. I attribute this to a combination of careful listening to my litany of "here are all the things on my mind" from the site visit, and the Pinterest boards I assembled. The colour schemes, the restraint, the use of woods, the details like floor-matched baseboards, LeGrand Adorne switches and outlets.
Functionally... it's an 85% from me on reflection. On the one hand, they have suggested some truly good ideas for the foyer and the weird wall next to it. The choice to convert the bedroom walkin closet to an alcove, then use one of the edges to define a partition creating a defined separate seating area, is inspired. On the other hand... the layout of the living space (kitchen/living/dining) actually survives almost unchanged, just redone with new floors/cabinets/appliances and furniture chosen for the space (so it fits better). Is that what's best, or have I just left them no alternative?
They also seem to love a low builtin in front of the windows. Given that the sills are only 18" above the floor, I mean, I guess so.
I gave them some small tweaks, some rooted in "this is a hard requirement because of building stuff" (like "can't put anything fixed in front of FCU access panels"), others in "not quite my style" (like "no banquette seating please" and "put this chair over there"). It did feel a bit like Kim Jong Un giving "on the spot guidance" at times but I think it's important to put that feeling aside: this is mine, ultimately, and now's the time to make sure I'm happy with how it's going and how it will be.
Also, they showed me their budget projection, and, uh, well, it's a good thing my initial estimate included a healthy cushion, because this is going to be expensive.
Anyhow, I guess this is happening, and the result is going to be quite gorgeous.
Turns out Facebook Marketplace is filled with people looking to flog those 102L storage bins for cheap. That's one option for packing stuff up. There are also divers listings for free cardboard boxes in varying degrees of nick.
I suspect a rolling garment rack with a drop cloth over it would also not be amiss.
I should write out a list for myself of what's getting packed and what's being relocated with me for the duration. Unlike a full move-out, I will have access to my things if I should really need anything while the process is underway.
dewline
kaberettObserving. All Souls'. Candle lit; Seelkuchen eaten.
Reading. ( Rucka, Waitrose Cookery School, Stocks, Duncan, Ravindran )
Playing. Merrily pootling along with I Love Hue. Hatched my first dragon with Primal eyes in The Dragons Game.
Cooking. Two variations on a recipe: smitten kitchen's winter squash and spinach pasta bake and the recipe that inspired it, Ottolenghi's pasta and butternut squash cake. On the first day I definitely preferred the smitten kitchen version; on subsequent days I became increasingly convinced by the Ottolenghi. (You see, I had about twice as much of all of the ingredients as I needed, and the spinach definitely needed eating Imminently, and so I thought I'd make them simultaneously so we could do the side-by-side comparison and then freeze some...)
And then this evening I made another round of the wahaca autumn stew with pipián, this time with even wronger chillis but a sensible amount of herbs, and was delighted that it met with my mother's approval.
Eating. SCHWARZBROT with Lizard honey. Curries various courtesy of my father. Salads and lunches various courtesy of my mother. The dark chocolate & raspberry stars that are a Special Seasonal Treat. National Trust lemon drizzle cake. A RASPBERRY.
Exploring. THE NEW SITE FOR ADMIN: THE LRP. And this afternoon we went on an adventure to Anglesey Abbey, where the dahlias were alas gone but we found many many more cyclamen than we knew were there, and several things in the winter garden were at a different stage than I think I'd ever seen them before and were extremely pretty with it.
Creating. Carved a pumpkin for the toddler!
senmutIronhide walks in on Ratchet
mdlbearNot a bad week. The housemates returned from OVFF Wednesday morning, so I'm off the hook for taking care of Cricket and Brooklyn. So I'm back to caring for two cats in one room again. And I was fairly productive -- not much music but a lot of work on the HyperSpace Express website, and N's author site. Which should have been done a month or more ago, but better late than not at all.
I wrote a post yesterday that wasn't one of the usual repeating ones (Thankful Thursday, Done Since, and Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit). It's been a while since I did that.
Only four walks this week :P -- I woke up with a leg cramp yesterday; the other two missing mornings were a matter of timing. See above about Wednesday. I think Monday I just slept in. Or fell down a rabbit hole. So far the main thing the Sansung smartwatch is good for is tracking my sleep. The main reason I got it in the first place was for emergency calls, but I haven't tested that function -- or even ordinary calling -- at all. Should fix that.
I also haven't made a portfolio/list of all the websites I've build over the years. I'm not even sure how many there are. Need to fix that too.
dewlinesparoweHere is a practical idea. Quarry from your Bible a list of the immutable qualities of God and press them into your heart. When calamity strikes, recite them over and over. My list reads like this:
He is still sovereign. He still knows my name. Angels still respond to his call. The hearts of rulers still bend at his bidding. The death of Jesus still saves souls. The Spirit of God still indwells saints. Heaven is still only heartbeats away. The grave is temporary housing. God is still faithful. He is not caught off guard. He uses everything for his glory and my ultimate good. He uses tragedy to accomplish his will, and his will is right and holy and perfect. God bears fruit in the midst of affliction.
Welcome this truth into your heart: Jesus understands. Grip God’s sovereignty and never let it go.
jadelennox - Paying it forwardandrewducker - Interesting Links for 04-11-2025sparowe - YMI -- ODB: 4 November 2025erika - well, how did i get here? (into the blue again, after the money's gone, once in a lifetime)ink_13 - Good but not greatalthea_valara - Crafting Update, October 2025wychwood - (no subject)senmut - 30 in 30: Transformers G1andrewducker - Interesting Links for 03-11-2025sparowe - YMI -- ODB: 3 November 2025kareila - how is it November alreadyink_13 - Voyage into a strange landdewline - A Thought on the Moment - 2 Nov. 2025madgastronomer - on the binding of bookskaberett - vital functionssenmut - 30 in 30: Transformers: Shattered Glassdelphi - Six Sentence Sundaymdlbear - Done Since 2025-10-26dewline - Baseball Sorrow 2025sparowe - Upwords - Max Lucado: 2 November 2025branchandroot![[site community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/comm_staff.png){kind=small}
