Things Worth Writing Home About
You are all invited to my birthday celebration, Saturday night (June 30th), as early as 6:30 at my apartment. It won’t run super late (not past midnight) and there will be lots of good company, good music, and PBR (probably). If you want anything more than cheap East Village beer or wine, you should bring it 
There will be appetizers.
So ends my week-long birthday celebration. Thanks for joining in.
A lot of people have been ending up in my office in tears recently, and I’m not entirely sure what I can do about it. I’ve worked with the same population of people for over two years now, but I’ve never encountered so many who are willing to open up. Am I becoming soft in my old age, or are the problems just getting too heavy to bear?
As a case manager, I’m tough. There’s no question about it. I’m tough because with this population, if you are too nice, too lenient, or too nurturing, you will find yourself immersed in BS which you cannot possibly dig your way out of. Unfortunately, many people who receive public assistance (note: many, not all) lie unconditionally, as though they don’t even know how to speak the truth. I’ve had people lie to me without any reason for lying, other than that’s what they’re used to. As a result, I tend not to believe a word anyone says and it makes me look like a skeptic.
But these words I’ve been hearing lately are true, and no level of skepticism on my part can possibly alter that. People are homeless. People are broke. People are alone. And they are here, telling me about it, pleading for my assistance. I’m not writing this because I think the world should look and see how special I am. I’m writing this because I have no freakin’ clue what I’m supposed to do, and I wanted to tell someone about it. Lucky you.
I guess this is one of those times where I’m just supposed to remember that I’m a tool in the hands of the Builder, so just keep on keepin’ on. Wish me luck.
This was my birthday dessert, compliments of Katie:
Yes, that fruit is ON FIRE. I’m pleased to report that my apartment is still standing.
Yesterday was the first official meeting of the unofficial TVC Inklings. For the record, we are unofficial because we are not actually endorsed by the church. However, we still call ourselves the TVC Inklings because we are all TVC members/attenders, the pastor knows about it and even considered joining us, and we want to make a distinction between our Inklings group and the original which can never be replaced.
Yesterday’s main topic was (broadly) creation. We discussed Michael Behe’s new book on intelligent design, as well as Darwin’s Origin of the Species, and the impact both men have had on how science interacts with the creation of the universe. Of course, being a non-scientist myself, I contribute more on the philosophical, literary side of things, but Luke and David led an extremely intellectual discussion which, I’m sad to admit, may have been slightly out of my grasp. Still, I feel oodles smarter after the experience.
In addition, yesterday’s tobaccos were #516, 536, and 563 (I think) from Nat Sherman. And, of course, I had a Guiness Long live The Inklings
Last night, I boiled pasta for dinner. Realizing that I had no bread, I thought I’d cook a lot of pasta, and bring the leftover to work for lunch. As it turned out, I didn’t cook enough pasta. So I refilled the pot with water, set it to boil, and tended to something on the computer. A half an hour later, the water had boiled off almost entirely and the pot was slightly discolored. I refilled the pot again, paid a bit closer attention to the boil, and then added the rest of the pasta in the box. The phone rang, and I talked for a bit when I suddenly realized that the pasta was still boiling. I now have mushy pasta.
Today will be a better day.
Those Shoes
So many to choose
But all I would lose
The song I would use
Now a powerless ruse
So sad for a muse
When he has to excuse
A minor bout of the blues
Brought on by those shoesOh, if it weren’t for those shoes
Congratulations to Katie who got cast in Indiana Jones 4! How freakin’ awesome is that 
