Vernacular

Main Entry:
ver·nac·u·lar
Function:
adjective
Etymology:
Latin vernaculus native, from verna slave born in the master's house, native
Date:
1601
1 a: using a language or dialect native to a region or country rather than a literary, cultured, or foreign language b: of, relating to, or being a nonstandard language or dialect of a place, region, or country c: of, relating to, or being the normal spoken form of a language2: applied to a plant or animal in the common native speech as distinguished from the Latin nomenclature of scientific classification 3: of, relating to, or characteristic of a period, place, or group ; especially : of, relating to, or being the common building style of a period or place
— ver·nac·u·lar·ly adverb

Just in case you weren't sure, I'm apparently a bit of a Yankee. I find myself living in the south these days and I'm rather enjoying it, as I've said before. Though, it does appear that there are some words that I use that are just a little silly to these southerners. Things like sliver (splinter) and pop (soda). Apparently, crayons has 2 syllables and caramel has 3. I'm learning more and more of this southern tongue, but I'll probably always have more oatmeal in my pantry than grits.

All that said, I'd like to reveal the results of this fancy little quiz, just to prove that I'm quite possibly capable of playing for both teams!

You Are 50% Yankee, 50% Dixie

You're a pretty even split of Yankee and Dixie. You've probably traveled around a lot in your life.

Are You a Yankee or Dixie?

Moreover, I blame the midwest! ;-)

Your Linguistic Profile:

55% General American English 20% Upper Midwestern 10% Yankee 5% Dixie 5% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Hooray for me!!

I finally did it. After, literally, years of wanting to, I added a label cloud tonight.

Go Me!

Now, I'm sleepy and going to go nigh nigh.

Thanksgiving

Today was Thanksgiving and I've just got to say, it was absolutely wonderful. I took the kids with me over to a friend's family's house for the festive meal. What a fun bunch they are! It was awesome to meet new people. To watch the boys play Wii, Elefun, the slot machine!! To see through a window into my friend's life. The growing up. The embarrassing stories. The 1st grade papers! HA!!

Good times were had by all. Thank you so much, my friend, for sharing your family with mine and making this holiday so enjoyable for us.

A real live original - from me!

Here's a first from me. A recipe!!

Tonight, I had a hankering for some onion soup and no moolah with which to purchase some delicious soup from the Red Onion. So I set about with the mission of using what I had in the house to create something delicious that hopefully would meet my need and be tolerated by the children.

The boys and I loved it. Sweetie, regretfully declined.

3 for 4 isn't that bad, in my opinion, and I love onion soup and she doesn't...so, I'm gonna share my original creation.

3 cups of water
3 cubes of chicken bullion
2 small onions chopped in big chunks
a dash of garlic and pepper
A bunch of mozzarella
1 package of small refrigerator biscuits (though not the Grands-just the cheap ones)

Here's what I did:

Boil the water with the seasoning.
Once boiling, add the onions.
When boiling again (about 10 minutes), lower heat to simmer while the rolls bake.
Bake 2 rolls in each large muffin tins for about 7 minutes at 400.

Then, I pulled the rolls out, popped them into smallish, oven safe bowls, poured the oniony soup over the biscuits and topped each bowl with mozzarella cheese. The bowls then went into the oven and baked until the cheese was a little brown. There was easily enough for 5 servings and since Sweetie opted out, I had 2 servings as did the Middle Mann.

Again, I thought it was delicious, and the boys gobbled it up!

Give it a try and tell me what you think? Maybe add some flare of your own and send me the advice!!

can I get me some o' dat???

Your Rapper Name Is...

Grandmaster Money

What's Your Rapper Name?

People! I need prayer

Alright, I'm headed out of work on Friday realizing that this is perhaps a sort of bad day. Not only is it payday, that was already fully spent, but it's also the day before vacation. Do y'all know what happens when I take vacation??

Needless to say, I'm worried. Pray for me. I'm off this whole week. Hopefully, I'll just sleep a ton. Hopefully, nothing bad will happen. Hopefully, this will be the beginning of a new trend for me. I'm totally on board for a new trend in my life. I'd love for bad things to stop happening when I'm off work on vaca.

You might be able to help. Pray! I welcome it. No matter your faith basis!!

What can I do?

I love text messaging. I text all the time. Text allows me to keep in contact with people I just don't have time for. It's quick. I find it thoughtful - though I know I'm somewhat in the minority on that, at least for people in my demographic. Most of all, it's easy.

Last week, I got a text from a friend of mine. I've known her since before she was in Junior High. Tonight, she texted me some pretty huge news. Huge like, life altering. hasn't told her mom. way outside the path she was on. news. I'm not really surprised by the news. Not shocked at it's existence in any regard.

Years and years ago, I was in a similar spot at a similar age and my church and the Christian community I was involved in then had very strange ways of 'being supportive' that generally involved being shut out, shunned, unwelcomed. It was horrible. I was still me. I was clearly in need of more Jesus. I was in a place of softness in my heart where I would have actually welcomed love like Jesus'. I got it from Him, just not His church. It was sad to me. Really really sad.

Fast forward a few years later and I began to understand a new idea about this sort of thing. The reactions of the Church became very clear to me during this time. At that time, my response to this new understanding was something I've come to understand as righteous discontent. The only real solution to this discontent is to actually do something about it. Something to cause change - something to right the wrong that causes the discontent in the first place.

THEN! some schtuff went down for a friend of mine. It was awful. Truly truly awful. Hearts hurt. Lives broken. You know what? The part that broke my heart the most was that there was again, someone in deep need of Jesus love and the Church didn't give love. They gave rules. They gave counsel. They gave words. They didn't give love. One person, maybe three or four once everything was said and done, loved my friend.

AND THEN!! Some other schtuff went down for a different friend of mine. The church had an opportunity to Love. The church didn't make that choice. Again. I loved my friend. I let her know, in love, that she was Loved. That it didn't make her choices right or wrong or good for her or bad for her. Those were questions she'd have to get answers for. She knows my opinion, but she also knows that I LOVE her. Even if she makes more bad choices. She's loved. Even if she hurts herself because she didn't do the right thing. She's loved.

So, about this text convo I'm in the middle of, this girl. I love her. I hate some of the things she does to herself, but I know. I've been where she is. The only person who loved me through that was my mom. Terrifying. Nearly inconceivable. 100% Lifeline. I don't know if my friend has that sort of safety net in the area where she lives. I know that I can't certainly make choices for her or walk the road of consequence for her, but my goodness! I'm sure as the sun will rise that today's modern church sure isn't going to love her. Especially not if she goes back to where she came from.

I can't be her mom. Can't be the answer. I can't be anything more than love for her. It's so hard to be love from so very far away.