So, Tuesday is my birthday. By now, you all know I’m a tad eccentric. What would be my ultimate b-day gift? Well, if you happen to have an extra $85,000.00 lying around you don’t know what to do with, you could always buy me THIS. I am gaga for trolleys. Why? I love old stuff. I really, really love old stuff. Trolleys are great for tricking out in the Steampunk style as they already have great wood panels and brass accessories. This particular trolley comes with a potty. Very important for those of us who suffer from IBS.
Even though it’s called the party trolley, you know what I would do with it. That’s right, it becomes the tea trolley. yeah, baby! There I would go, puttering down the road, ding! ding!, stopping to have tea with people.
Heck, it would just even be a blast to drive the thing!
DING! DING!
I received an email from the church secretary today regarding the fall home groups. Ack! Fall! Meetings and start dates begin next month. NEXT MONTH! and in September.
Here is my challenge to you, join one of my Yahoo! groups. Either the Three Plus One Club
alt=”Click here to join threeplusoneclub”>
Click to join threeplusoneclub
or Christian ladies Tea Society.
alt=”Click here to join christianladiesteasociety”>
Click to join christianladiesteasociety
Why? Because people are lonely. People are seeking. Be a mentor. Reach out and make friends and change people’s lives for the better. More ideas and recipes to come on both group sites.
It ended well tonight although somewhere in the middle, I did try and kick out my guests. I did end up having a revelation on something I’d been trying to do lately. In an attempt to not feel totally out of control (things aren’t going so well career wise) I had been trying to control meaningless inconsequential things, and pretty much everything my husband was doing.
Lord, now that I know what is going on, help me to give up control to You, to place my trust in You. Increase my faith and decrease my waist. I know every good thing comes from You and you have my best interests at heart.
In Jesus name, Amen.
Click on any picture to make it bigger.
www.houseofcommonstea.com
Jessica’s website is down right now but please do visit it soon and often and if you find yourself heading to Denver, please do visit her. Here is her address:
2401 15th St
Denver, CO
303-455-4832
Here is how you get there going North on I-25. Take exit 23. You will pass by the aquarium which will be on your right. Keep on the road and follow it around without turning. Cross over 15th street. House of Commons is on the left about 3-4 doors down, just past the bar and grill. I had had a terrible morning in down town Denver. Homeless men by the droves kept coming up to me and begging for change and breakfast (perhaps Gov. Ritter should do something about cleaning up the downtown area instead of passing bills that rob the majority of the populace of privacy in the bathroom.) Feeling completely unsafe(one man in particular seemed to be everywhere I was. It was too coincidental to be random.) and harassed, I left the downtown area to spend my money elsewhere.
After visiting the Denver Art Museum (no panhandlers there!) I went to find the House of Commons. I didn’t realize how far south I had gone (I’m not so good with directions) I thought I would drive a bit to the mall and eat there but then changed my mind again as I really wanted to spend money on small business owner. I know that not every person in the mall is part of a large chain store, but there is just something appealing and satisfying about spending money outside the mall where all the stores look the same and carry the same thing everyone else does and I didn’t want fast food which always seems to make me sick to my stomach.
I turned my car around and off to House of Commons I went. It took some doing and I got a bit lost because I exited too soon but a nice Denver police officer (sorry again to have disturbed you on your lunch break!) pointed me in the right direction. I found it! By the time I arrived, the streets were quite busy and I had to park a ways away. I ended up parking across form a green belt that ran the length of a river. there were nice sized trees offering shade and many park benches. I decided to come back to that spot to while away the rest of the afternoon until it was time to pick up Tech Hubby from his meeting.
Once inside the HoC, I ordered a pot of Lady Grey and a curry chicken salad sandwich. Both were quite delicious. I visited with Jessica, the owner, telling her about my previous visit (sad to say (wishing I could go more frequently) it was about three years ago, shortly after she opened). She was delighted I had come back- how could I not? -and recommended some local shops to me. I thanked her and left and promptly went next door to, well, you’ll have to see in tomorrow’s post. You won’t want to miss it. We definitely need one of these in my city. I’d open on up tomorrow if I had the money and I think it would do well.
p.s. I gave Jessica my introduction card. She asked me what I speak about and I told her about the things I do involving hospitality. She said she used to open her restaurant every Tuesday to moms with new born babies. It has waned over the years but she said while it was going, it was a great group.
‘See’ you tomorrow!
What’s on your calendar of events for the summer? Is it all about you and your family, or are you reaching out and being a blessing to others? I’ll tell ya, it was nice while my husband was in Tasmania for two weeks. As much as I love our home group couples, not having to be, ‘on’ for two weeks in a row was a real treat. By, ‘on’ I mean this; as an introvert I naturally re-charge my batteries by being a lone. I could spend all day digging lint out of my belly button and be quite content and feel like I’ve put in a good days work. Some people re-charge by being around other people which makes being a friend or family member of an introvert difficult for them and they just do not, no matter how hard I try to explain, understand how I can spend so much time away from those I love and be happy about it. So, now that Tech Hubby is back from far away places, the hospitality wheel begins to spin again. Oh, joy. We are cutting back the schedule this summer to every other Wednesday so that we all may go and enjoy the warm weather with ourselves. Today, I’m having tea with a friend from across town. We’re meeting at a central location which feels closer to my house than hers. I’ll take her some loose teas and something cute and of course blog about it later with pictures from the coffee house which I think let me use their rest room once when my IBS was acting up. Businesses that let me, a non-paying customer in dire need, use their restroom will always and forever be recommended by me to my friends and family, and their friends and family. It’s that serious.
So, call a friend, a neighbor, a long since lost touch with friend and make plans this summer that involve you, not just your kids.
Tech Hubby is home, safe and sound. The people in Tasmania took great care of him. They even invited him to their home and served him a home cooked meal of lamb. This touched my heart so much. I’ve been praying blessings on them ever since. Also, he brought back a hand knitted tea cozy for me. I now have a hand made craft from Tasmania! The best though, is that I have him, safe and sound and home where he belongs.
Our wedding topper.
City Grandma Cup and Saucer, originally uploaded by dancingteacup.
This teacup is from the grand other on my father’s side of the family. She brought a suit case full of china to our house from Buffalo, NY one summer. My sister and I were given the privilege of dividing up the china between us. This is one of three cups fro her I dearly treasure.
shocked, originally uploaded by dancingteacup.
It’s a name this photo contest. Must have at least ten unique entries. Continental U.S. only. Winner will receive a selection of loose teas.
Contest ends tonight at 9:00p.m. Central Mountain time.
See the time ticker at the top of my website?(the one on the right, the other one is for Tasmania, I’ll explain later) When that says 9 p.m., the contest is over.
Thanks! Have fun!
Dave Samford has written a book about losing one’s faith. I don’t know Mr. Samford and I am not trying to attack him personally, I just need to address a couple of things I saw in an article reviewing his book and hopefully clarify some things.
First, in his title:
If God Disappears: 9 Faith Wreckers and What to Do About Them- (the bold emphasis is mine)
God does not disappear. He is always with us, it is we who move away from Him. How do we move away from God?-by not reading our bible, not praying, leaving our churches over small issues.
Second point I would like to address:it’s actually a two parter.
The author noted that he too “experientially” lost his faith a few years back when he encountered a series of unfortunate news, including his daughter being diagnosed with endometriosis – a condition that affects the womb.
“I felt God was pounding and pounding and pounding on me,” he said.
This quote is taken from the article written on May 9 , 2008 by Katherine T. Phan from the Christian Post Reporter.
The bible never says being a Christian puts you on easy street, in fact, it says quite the opposite.
- 1 Peter 1:6
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
James 1:2
[ Trials and Temptations ] Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
1 Thessalonians 3:3
so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.
2 Thessalonians 1:4
Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
Luke 22:28
You are those who have stood by me in my trials.
Are churches not teaching this? If not, why not? I attended an Evangelical church for many years. Much was taught about prosperity and I am grateful for the lessons I learned while a member of that church, but after 5 years of the same theme, I wanted to hear more about something different. People, obviously, need to hear about the consequence of their actions. We need to hear about how sin effects our lives and that hell is a real place where you could end up. We need to hear about trials and tribulations and how to dig into the word, how to put on our armor, how to turn to God and not see Him as the enemy. God is not the enemy, people. Our actions, and the things we do to ourselves, is what is the enemy. If people are leaving churches because they are losing their faith, churches must take partial responsibility for this if they are not teaching the lessons that are hard to hear. You cannot just go around tickling people’s ears with what they want to hear. If churches/people i n churches want to save lives and souls, they must teach the truth in all things, even if it is not what people want to hear.
Do you feel lost? Are you struggling? When was the last time you read your bible, or prayed? If you are going through tough times, read the book of Job. The book of Job has a great ending! The book of Job can give you hope and at the very least, might make you say, ‘Boy, I’m glad I wasn’t, Job. I guess my problems are so bad. I can get through this.’ Or, if you feel your problems are worse than what Job went through you can gain some perspective and see that there is hope in the midst of a crisis if you turn to God for help.
To read the entire article on Dave Samford’s book, please click HERE to access the link.
Also, good for Joel Olsteen for upholding biblical truths about homosexuality and for not caving under the pressure of those who want their sin to be accepted and celebrated.
UT President, Lloyd Jacobs failed to uphold the diversity policies of the University of Toldeo ( and the First Amendment) when he sacked Crystal Dixon for writing a letter to the editor of Toledo Free Press apparently in response to a column written by the Editor-in -chief, Michael S. Miller in an attempt to dispel the increasingly popular myth (which he bought in to) perpetuated by homosexuals who say fighting for the rights of homosexuals is the same as the civil rights movement. Being born black is NOT the same as choosing a homosexual lifestyle. It is an insult to those who gave their lives for civil freedoms and liberties, to now be lumped into the same category as the homosexual lifestyle. Read more HERE.
Here is the publisher’s shocking response to the fall out over Ms. Dixon’s letter. Clearly he is very one sided inhis opinions.
Dixon, associate vice president for human resources at the University of Toledo and an elder/minister at End Time Christian Fellowship in Toledo, responded to a column by Editor in Chief Michael S. Miller concerning gay rights, with such thoughts as, “I take great umbrage at the notion that those choosing the homosexual lifestyle are ‘civil rights victims.’ Here’s why. I cannot wake up tomorrow and not be a Black woman. I am genetically and biologically a Black woman and very pleased to be so as my Creator intended. Daily, thousands of homosexuals make a life decision to leave the gay lifestyle …”
I defend Dixon’s right to express her opinions, including and especially her religious beliefs, even if I do not agree with them. Lord knows, there have been plenty of unusual opinions expressed in these pages during the past three years. But as someone who works in human resources for a very public institution, someone who presumably is educated on the importance of diversity in the workplace, Dixon has caused her employer some embarrassment and potentially compromised its mission of inclusion and outreach. She is an official for UT and a minister, and the blurring of her two roles has led UT to suspend her, with pay.
The publisher in me cringes at that breach of her freedom, but the business owner in me understands the message the university and President Lloyd Jacobs were compelled to send.-Thomas F. Pounds
President and Publisher
Bold emphasis mine. Mr. Pounds is painting Ms. Dixon in a very biased and unfair light. Mr. Pounds also writes that the university was compelled to send a message. Well, their message is clear to me, only those who believe what we believe will be tolerated. There is no message of upholding their proclaimed values of diversity or political correctness that I can see. Only one of intolerance to Ms. Dixon’s words and beliefs.
Do you think she should be suspended for what she said? Obviously the right to free speech is not being protected at UT.
