Things I Like Tuesday: Clementine Oranges

From Wikipedia:
A clementine is a hesperidium, of a variety of mandarin orange (Citrus reticulata) so named in 1902.

The traditional story is that it was "originally an accidental hybrid said to have been discovered by Father Clément Rodier in the garden of his orphanage in Misserghin, Algeria."

But it might have originated in China much earlier.

Here's why I like Clementines:

1. They're sweet.

2. I don't notice the pulp. I don't like pulp. At all. So, I usually don't like oranges. I know Clementines have pulp, but I don't notice it.

3. I really like peeling oranges of any kind. Even though I don't eat most oranges, I'll still peel it for you to eat. It's always my goal to get the entire peel off in one piece. Clementines are known for peeling easily, so that's a bonus.

Peel Success!

4. They're just darling. (Oh, my darling Clementine! I had to.) Small and cute.

5. They remind me of England. I lived with a bunch of Californians. I think they thought the oranges were a substitute for the sunlight they were missing. I don't know. All I knew was that Clementines were delicious and cheap (cheaper than they are here, oddly enough). We were constantly eating them.

6. They smell delicious. My office has consistently smelled like oranges since last week. Mmm.

Things I Like Tuesday: England

This time five years ago, I was navigating cold, damp, cobblestone roads and trying not to say y'all too much in public. I was listening to lectures about British history and culture and rowing on the Thames (and learning that it's pronounced "Tims").
Also, I was falling in like with England. [I would say falling in love, because, really, I was, but this is Things I Like Tuesday. I'm trying to stay true to the title.]

Here are a few things I love..like...about England:

I like that they love their tea. With cream. As do I.
I like their food, too. Not all of it, but they have excellent scones and pastries and these things that are called "pasties" that are like hot pockets if hot pockets were homemade in the 18th century and delicious and bigger than a hand. Okay, so not really like hot pockets. They're more like pot pies to go. By far my favorite food there.
I like their little markets and that you have to specify whether you want a pound weight-wise or money-wise.

I like that they still use pounds and pences. They refuse to join the rest of Europe with the euros. Stubborn, but admirable.

I like their libraries. And that the whole country seems to love reading and writing and books. [yes, this is a vast generalization, but look at all the authors from there: C. S. Lewis, Jane Austen, J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, and some guy called Shakespeare, among many, many, many others.]

I like their vocabulary. They call people "love" in the way some Southern women call people "hun," except this time it's everybody, not just big-haired ladies. Surprisingly, when a big, scruffy man you've never met before calls you "Love," it is only endearing, not creepy. I like that they say "brilliant" similar to the way we say "cool," but it's so much richer than "cool." While I lived there, I did manage to incorporate this one into my vocabulary, but it has since died out--I'm going to work on bringing it back. I like that they call the letter Z "zed," as in, "Do you spell your name with a zed?" ummm.....yes. (my exact response when asked the first time).
Obviously, I like their accents.
I like how very polite everyone is.

I like their old buildings, and the "new" ones built before my country was founded.
I like that there are castles and colleges and cathedrals everywhere.
I like that a lot of people walk or ride bikes or buses around. I like that every single person on the road/sidewalks believes they have the right-of-way. It makes life more interesting when you're walking along the sidewalk and a bus slightly brushes the bag on your shoulder or a bike practically runs you over. I like that they have tandum bikes for five--they're full on the way to school, and only have one rider on the way back home after the kids are dropped off. Adorable.
The public transportation is also wonderful.
I like that they have a queen. And that her name is the same as mine.
I like that they have such a fantastic, long history, rich with traditions that are still practiced today.

I like that they row. I like that they play football (soccer) and get so into it. I like that they call our football "American football" and think that it's mostly like rugby. I like that they play cricket and croquet enough to have a croquet course on the college campus. I like that they're not very good at "hoopball" and that they don't care. I like that they think curling is the Olympic sport that most people want to watch 87hours of during the Winter Olympics.

I really like England. I would not mind visiting there again, or living there again.
[There's also a pretty good chance you'll read more of my adventures there on this blog at some point.]

Things I Like Tuesday: Pictures

Pictures are so fun. Maybe they speak a thousand words, maybe only two, but I like to look at them. And they're great at capturing moments. As I'm looking back at the year we're finishing out, I thought I would combine this already-planned TILT with a look back at 2010.
Here are some of my favorite pictures/moments from this year (of the ones taken with my camera, not my favorite pictures I've seen. I don't have the rights for all of those.):

Haiti benefit concert with Darilynn. This is a picture of Andy Davis and Dave Barnes. They were two of many, many artists. One of the best concerts I've been to.

Camping/Hiking trip with Mary and Bryan. The hiking part was fun.

Dove Award seat-filling. I, obviously, didn't know how to look in this pic with Nicole Mullins. Mandisa took the picture.

I'm still very sad that the taped messed up during this filming. I think this script was some of my best work.

I don't remember what we're laughing about, but I do remember we laughed until several of us were crying.

Posing at Erin's wedding.

Wilson County Fair!

Family Portrait Session

Finals week--in the t-shirt I wore for three days, holding the mug that held countless cups of peppermint tea. 

Very Merry Neighborly Christmas concert

fun idea in action

Things I Like Tuesday: Winter

Today is the first day of Winter.
I like winter. It's not my favorite, but I like it.

Christmas...
coats and scarves and hats...
snuggling up under multiple blankets...
warm drinks (hot cocoa...cider...tea!)...
New Year and the Eve of the New Year...
parties, parties, parties with lots of tasty things to eat (and sparkling juices and Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash)...
snow...
taking deep breaths of crisp wintry air...
memories (I suppose this applies to every season, but winter memories seem so nice and extra nostalgic)...

I think winter is just a little bit magical.

Things I Like Tuesday: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Seeing the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade live is not just on my bucket list, it's on my next-year-for-real-this-time list.

I have watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade on Thanksgiving morning for many, many years. It's a tradition. Really, it's the one Thanksgiving tradition in my family that has endured for so long. We change meal times, menus, and locations, but I always watch the parade. While I'm really the only one to consistently watch the parade from the ribbon-cutting all the way to end, my dad and sister usually join in for at least a little while. I have told my mother, as she toils in the kitchen while I relax on the couch, that when I'm in charge of the cooking, we'll have to move the meal to a later time. I'll have to watch the parade first.

Why I like the parade so much, I'm not really sure. It is amazing, though...

The floats, the balloons, the bands, the Broadway performances, Harold Square, Al Roker, the Rockettes, the celebrity guests, the tradition, the excitement...

oh, and this guy:

This guy officially marks the beginning of the Christmas season. And as soon as he makes an appearance, usually around 11am Thanksgiving Day, I wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Things I Like Tuesday: my room

I couldn't decide what to write about today, then I realized that I'm sitting here, right inside something I like very much. 

I don't have a whole house, or condo, or apartment to myself yet, but I do have a room. And I like it.

Here are some of the things I like most in it:

These are some travel photos, all taken by yours truly.

The quote in the middle frame is one my roommate sent me when I was in England: 

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page." --St. Augustine

This is my desk. And my green chair.

I write here and watch lectures and sometimes waste time on facebook and twitter :-)

This is my brain.

My bulletin board hangs above my desk and holds lots of important notes--quotes I don't want to forget, Bible verses that are especially important in my life at this moment, ideas for stories/poems/essays--as well as a few bridesmaids bouquets, some fun stickers, and other memorabilia. Fun fact: I've had that button in the top right corner since I was 2 or 3. It says "A friend loves at all times. Prov 17:17" and was given to me by my best friend at the time.

My friend Jo gave me an invisible bookshelf. I hang my heaviest books on it, the dictionary and thesaurus (also my little rhyming dictionary)...I guess I like the danger it imposes on the helpless mugs below?

My mom bought me this typewriter somewhere one summer. She saw a picture or something of a famous author's house. They had the typewriter that this author used to type all of his books. She wanted me to have one for when I became a famous writer. I told her she could just save my computer. I really like the typewriter for decoration, though. It still reads "Welcome Home Elizabeth" on the top sheet of paper.

These hang above my bed. If I could somehow manage to only have paper lanterns for lighting in my entire house, I would.

Things I Like Tuesday: Tea

Green Tea - Breakfast Tea - Chamomile Tea - Chai Tea

but not Earl Grey!

photo by Shandi-lee

At the age of three, I was invited to my first real tea party. Wearing a dress three sizes too big and plastic heels that clicked as I walked, I went, bearing my Fisher Price pink tea set. I had had my own tea parties previously, attended by my dad, mom, and uncle, along with various dolls and stuffed animals. But this was a real tea party, with real tea!

photo by pigpogm

There are many guesses as to when tea began as a beverage, but many agree that it happened about 4000 years ago in China. The story goes that Emperor Shen Nung was boiling water, for health reasons, when a leaf fell in the pot. He noticed the water smelled good, so he tasted it, and apparently deemed it yummy. This is how the Chinese say tea was "invented."

The Japanese tell the story a little differently. They say that 1900 years ago, a Buddhist priest named Drama decided to stay awake for seven years and think only of Buddha. He was able to stay awake for five years, but then he started to fall asleep. In desperation, he grabbed some leaves from a nearby tree and began chewing on them. The leaves refreshed him and kept him awake for the next two years. The leaves were tea leaves. 

Other stories include the introduction of tea by a Buddhist monk named Gan Lu in China, and that it came out of the eyelids of the patriarch Zen Bodhidharma. 

 I'm probably going to go with the Emperor Shen Nung story.

photo by ratterrell

What about that delicious Southern nectar known as Iced Tea (which is always, always sweet--no need to specify)? It was invented at the Saint Louis World Fair in 1904. A tea merchant named Richard Blechynden (what an amazingly fun name to say!) couldn't get anyone to drink his hot tea in the hot weather. So, he poured some ice in. Instant hit.

photo by prakhar

When I was in college, I fell in love with tea. I was born and raised on the iced, sweet variety, but I found a new reason to partake--caffeine! I don't like coffee (well, I barely tolerate coffee with my cream), but there are times in one's college life when caffeine is a need. I learned to drink tea and I haven't quit yet. 

I fit in perfectly when I went to England. There, tea is always served with some cream and sugar. I loved it. We made tea constantly in our flat, with our electric tea pot. Electric tea pots are often in place of the American coffee pot--even in the dorm rooms! 

photo by Mastery of Maps

My favorite tea I've ever had was Kenyan tea. It was actually from Kenya. I had it while staying at the house of a couple--one a British missionary's kid, one an American--in Switzerland. I'd love to get my hands on some of that tea here in America. It was like English Breakfast, but stronger and richer. Yum!

Things I Like Tuesday: Fall!

crisp morning air - shivery nighttime temperatures

 bonfires - pumpkins - jackets

orange, yellow, red! leaves

festivals - parties - friends - family - holiday anticipation

(fall is pretty much my favorite)

photo credits: flickr user Munira :)

Things I Like Tuesday: Catalog Living

The tag line for Catalog Living is "A look into the exciting lives of the people who live in your catalogs." So funny. Here's the link: http://catalogliving.net/

It's Bed Blog Monday! Sweet Sleep

This was supposed to publish yesterday. Through some technical error it didn't publish yesterday. We can just pretend this happened on the day it was supposed to and also we'll count it as a Thing I Like, because I do. (See second-to-last sentence). 




I love my bed. Seriously, some days I feel like I could just stay in it all day. It's cozy and warm and soft. My bed isn't even that great, comparatively. It's a bed that I got at a discount furniture store and the second-cheapest mattress set available at Sam's Club. I don't have Egyptian cotton sheets, just some discounted ones I bought at a kiosk in the mall.
Earlier this year, I spent a night without my bed, without any bed, outside. I had a tent and a sleeping bag and some sort of inflatable yoga-mat type thing the backpacker in the group had brought along. I was miserable. I don't consider myself high maintenance, but I did not enjoy that night. I was cold and uncomfortable. I wanted to be in my bed.

The next morning, during my inner-dialogue rant about how awful my night had been, the thought occurred to me that I was not the only one who didn't rest easy that night. There were children around the world, orphaned, cold, and without a bed. They have never known the comfort of my cheap mattress and sheets, but the misery of my cold night on the ground is a reality they know too well.

An organization that works to help these children is Sweet Sleep, whose motto is "A bed for every head." They provide beds for orphans in countries around the world. They build sturdy bunk beds that will last many years and outfit them with blankets and mosquito nets. They want kids to have a good night's sleep and the ability to have pleasant dreams. And for some kids, having a bed and mosquito net is literally life saving.

Orphans in many countries have no choice but to sleep in beds that are broken, bug-infested, or soiled, if they have beds at all. For these children, this can mean being susceptible to disease, bone and joint trauma, and even learning problems. Sleeping without mosquito nets can mean exposure to malaria.

Sweet Sleep has been able to provide more than 3,000 beds for children in Moldova, Uganda, and Haiti. Right now, Sweet Sleep is partnering with the American Refugee Committee (ARC) to help hundreds of thousands of children living in child-headed households in the IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camps in northern Uganda. Sweet Sleep provides children returning to their home villages each with a bed, a mosquito net, and a Bible. These three simple items have greatly helped the children transfer from the camps to their villages. Many were reluctant to leave the camps, because they have lived there so long, but once they saw that children were receiving beds, nets, and Bibles, they were lining up to leave!
Sweet Sleep has a special need for the month of November--they need money for 700 beds, nets, and Bibles for Gulu, Uganda. Each resettlement kit--including a straw mat, mattress, blanket, mosquito net, and Bible--is just $50. Thanks to some friends of Sweet Sleep, any gifts given toward this project in October will be matched 100%! Today is Bed Blog Monday (not a real holiday), a blog campaign to raise awareness about this organization and specifically the Gulu project, so I thought I'd blog about it, too. I like Sweet Sleep because they are taking one simple thing that is often overlooked--a bed--and using it to share Christ's love with kids. To find out more about their work and the Gulu project, go to their website http://www.sweetsleep.org/ or their blog sweetsleep.blogspot.com.

Things I Like Tuesday: Fall, but not yet

I had planned to write about how much I like fall today, because sometime this week is the first day of fall (I'm not clear on which day, since a friend told me it was today, someone I follow on twitter said it's tomorrow, and my calendar says Thursday). But, it's been around 90 degrees in Nashville this week. Not very fall-like.

So, I decided to try to think of some things I like about hot weather.

I like swimming and that is best done in hot weather. I only went swimming once this summer, though, and that was just between a boat and a tube, so not really. (sorry, that's still kind of negative)

Positive thoughts...

It's nice to be able to wear shorts and skirts without my legs getting cold.

High temps are perfect for ice cream and, as you may know, I am especially fond of ice cream.

I'm generally less pale in the warmer months.

That's all I got. I like the summer, but for mostly for reasons not involving high temperatures. I am looking forward to the weather catching up with the time of year.

Things I Like Tuesday: Ice Cream

photo by flickr user tamdotcom

Ice Cream. Ice Dream. Frozen Custard. Frozen Yogurt. Gelato.

I like it all.

My love of all frozen treats is due to my grandfather, DaddyJim, I am sure. DaddyJim always has ice cream on hand. Many times, his freezer is loaded with at least three flavors. After every family meal, ice cream is served--generously. In our family, we have regular portions and "DaddyJim portions" of ice cream. "DaddyJim scoops" are about twice as packed as a regular scoop and there are at least three scoops per bowl. Whenever we go out with him anywhere, we usually make a stop to get some ice cream. Once, as I was leaving a family get-together to go to the movies, DaddyJim gave me twenty dollars "in case you need to get a popsicle or something."

So, maybe I inherited this thing I like.

Things I Like Tuesday: Sharpie Pens

Some may say that this entry is no different from the last Tuesday's. School supplies and Sharpie pens, while sold at the same store, are different. Okay, maybe Sharpie pens are school supplies, but they deserve their own Things I Like Tuesday. Because I really like them.

I first found out about Sharpie pens during the summer of '09. One of our camp locations provided us with TVs in our rooms. Since we had been "deprived" of television all summer, these TVs were almost constantly on whenever we were in the rooms (like 20 minutes total throughout the day). There were a lot of commercials for Sharpie pens. The commercial featured someone doodling a coffee cup using a coffee stain. We were intrigued.
Then, I got a job working for Operation Christmas Child as a temp. The Administrative Assistant's pen of choice? Sharpie. After one use, I decided that was also my pen of choice. They write smoothly, have a sharp tip, and don't bleed through the paper.
I especially like doodling with them:

especially during staff meetings.

One word of advice: Don't loan out your Sharpie pens, unless the borrower understands the significance of the loan.

Now, the Sharpie people have come out with a Sharpie Pencil. It writes like a pen, erases like a pencil for three days, then sets permanently. Check it out. Amazing.

Things I Like Tuesday: School Supplies

"Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address." --Joe Fox (a.k.a. Tom Hanks in You've Got Mail)

photo by flickr user clandinski

I have never been to New York in the fall, but I do love a newly sharpened pencil...and school supplies. For a couple of my jobs (including the one I have now), it has been one of my tasks to go to the office supply store. I must confess that I often spend a little more time perusing the aisles than just grabbing what we need. I love looking at the pens and file folders and paper clips and pencils and folders and notebooks and calendars and dry erase boards...

Ever since I can remember, I have loved getting supplies for school--when I began to homeschool, I actually worried about not ever having to shop for school supplies. We ended up needing those supplies anyway (except lunchboxes, but my mom would let us get one every couple of years, for field trips and stuff). This year, I was happy to "need" some school supplies again.

Notebook: check. Post-Its: check. Folders: check. Paper: check. Newly sharpened pencils: check.

Things I Like Tuesday: Internet Edition

Here are two sites I visit every day:

Relevant Magazine

Mental Floss

I'll use this blog to explain science to my children someday (okay, not really. My kids would be so confused, but they probably would have some pretty cool science fair projects.):

Fake Science

This is my friend's site. She posts pretty pictures of mostly girly things:

Free Yo Mind

This site makes me laugh out loud a lot:

Cake Wrecks

This is how I made facebook part of my job today:

FBCG

and twitter:

@fbcgvilletn

Likes/Dislikes

I like cheese puffs. (I'm kinda going through a phase. I won't share how many meals I've had that consisted solely of cheese puffs because then you might worry.)

I really like beat-boxing. As in, I like to listen to it--I can't actually beat-box myself. It amazes and intrigues me.

I dislike weed-eaters.

I really dislike merging onto an interstate when there's a huge 18-wheeler in the far right lane. It's tense. I may or may not hit my brakes every time this happens.

[I'm gonna tag this Things I Like Tuesday, even though it is Thursday and also things I dislike. But it's related. I'm not sure why I felt the need to explain that.]

Things I Like: Watching American Idol with my Grandmother

[See, Jennifer, I didn't completely abandon this series]

I watch American Idol with my Grandmother every Tuesday, and most Wednesday, nights. Mainly, I like watching the show with her because she provides excellent commentary.

Half the time, I have to remind her the show is on, and coach her to the right channel. But don't think that just because she doesn't know the time or the place, she isn't a passionate viewer. She states her opinion as fact and states it often--"You don't do that to a Patsy song. Oh, no. She can't do that to that song. Ugh." She disagrees with the judges with the same certainty--"I don't know why they said that. It was a great performance. They are just crazy."

Another thing I love is that she doesn't know anyone's name. We have to describe all the contestants, instead of referring to them by name--"the dreadlocks girl", "the one that played the piano", "the little guy." Just a few minutes ago she said, "I just love that little girl. I have no idea what she's called."

My favorite moment, though, is when she and my great-aunt were discussing the show. Neither of them knew anyone's name, which made it much more fun for the rest of us.

Great-Aunt: "What's that male-female woman's name?"

Me: "Ellen."

Great-Aunt: "She has a beautiful girlfriend."

Grandmother: "Yeah, she does. And what's that little runt that talks all the time?"

Me: "Ryan Seacrest?"

Grandmother: "Yes. He just thinks he's something. He got in Simon's face last week. Woohee! I couldn't believe it."

So great.

Things I Like: Chick-fil-A

I like Chick-fil-A.

I could eat (and have eaten) there 3 times a week, and still enjoy it.

Here's why I like them:

--I like their chicken. The nuggets are my favorite.

--They have waffle fries. Yum.

--Their ice cream is called "icedream" and that is funny. And they let you exchange your kids' meal prize for icedream.

--Cows telling people to eat chickens. Also funny...and slightly morbid for chicken lovers.

--They are closed on Sunday, and, aside from all the Christian implications a move like that has, "absence makes the heart grow fonder."

--The employees are friendly and actually seem to like serving people (which must be difficult to achieve in the fast-food business).

--I don't mind spending money there, because I know it will be used wisely, and to further the kingdom of God through the Cathys' WinShape organization. The organization has branches to help people in all walks of life to grow in their faith. Pretty cool.

--S. Truett Cathy (the founder) is a sweet little old man that has taught 13-year-old boys Sunday School class for 50+ years. Amazing.

If you live in a part of this country that does not have Chick-fil-A yet, I am sorry. I really like it.

Things I Like: Unpredictable Weather

I like unpredictable weather.

Don't get me wrong, I don't always enjoy surprise changes in temperature and precipitation (I also like the word precipitation. It's fun to say. But that's a whole other Tuesday) and I have been known to complain when I only have a jacket and ballet flats, instead of the more appropriate wool coat and boots, as I walk through snow flurries, or when I wear a sweater and it turns out to be 65 degrees that day. In fact, I became genuinely angry two weeks ago when the roads went from perfectly clear to treacherous in a matter of minutes.

However, deep down, I like it. I like that I live in Tennessee, where I've seen snow in April and my cousins once wore shorts on Christmas. I also like, that no matter how much technology and knowledge they have, the meteorologists are still sometimes wrong.

I'm not sure why I like for the weather to be unpredictable.

Maybe it's a little bit of pride in where I live. Tennessee is known for the unpredictable weather we have (At least, Tennesseeans act as if our weather is tons more unpredictable than other places'. It probably isn't.) and I'm mostly proud to be a Tennesseean.

Maybe it's because I've come to really enjoy unpredictability (which I think camp did to me) and I find the whole thing a little funny. I always love a good story, and being trapped in a sudden downpour makes for a good story.

Maybe because I think weather is God's way of showing us he's still in control. Sometimes I picture him looking at the meteorologists' predictions and thinking, "Let's have a little fun with this." In all likelihood, God does not think that way, but he is in charge and often unpredictable and weather shows off those traits perfectly and powerfully.

[P.S. Two Things I Like Tuesdays back-to-back is not cool. I'll try not to make that happen again.]

Things I Like Tuesday: Two Laugh-Out-Loud Websites

This first installment of Things I Like Tuesday is pretty straightforward. I like these two websites/blogs. They make me laugh, sometimes out loud.

unhappy hipsters--pictures from magazines of "hipster" homes, with new, hilarious captions.

awkward family photos--this one's been out there for a while, but is updated everyday. Mostly, I laugh and ask, "Why?"

And there you have it. Enjoy.