Soul Runnings

Happy Mother's Day to all mother's out there! It is a beautiful, sunny day in Portland today!  My day started out on a high note. As I sat at the bus stop, on my way to church, I took out my cell phone. I was still determined to beat my son-in-law at Words With Friends. That little rascal has beat me at nearly every single game so far. But I had a new strategy.  I learned from him. That little rascal! Anyway, a few minutes before the bus pulled up, I played the final tile and won!  Final score:  Me 370, Rascally Son-In-Law:  348! I about did a happy dance right there on the sidewalk! Victory is sweet! But as the day progressed, I sunk a bit in my spirits.  Now that I have won, I feel like I need to get back to real life. I do fear that this game is an addiction. A means of escape. Like binge eating or binge television. Is real life so painful that I really need to escape. To numb? Luckily, I got a phone call from my son and his girlfriend...

I am nearing the end of my third year of this blog. Year Three, Day 365 will land smack dab on Mother's Day. Perfect! I feel like I am limping along, perhaps even crawling to the finish line. My energy is low. Motivation practically nonexistent. Perhaps I should set some goals for Year Four. Need focus to keep me going. My successful pot of beans did perk me up yesterday. I was thrilled with how easy they were to prepare. Not to mention the taste and texture. Then there is the money saved, which is why I have been focused on beans lately. I was going to sleep in this morning. I had one of my 2 a.m. bouts of insomnia this morning. But my daughter called and told me to wake up. She and Gracie were coming to pick me up and go out for pho! Of course, I could not resist. Two of my favorite people, and one of my favorite lunches! Gracie was in a good mood: cheerful and curious. She was mesmerized with the ceiling fans at the pho restaurant. We went to "Pho...

I made the most heavenly pot of beans today. In my crockpot. No soaking required. They held their shape and made a lovely deep, brown sauce. They are going to go in my brown rice bowls. But I couldn't resist a small bowl as an evening snack. Just pinto beans, salt, pepper, a dash of garlic salt and red pepper flakes. Threw everything in the slow cooker. Covered it with water, turned it on low and let it cool for about 5 hours. Perfection! I spent $1.47 on a pound of dried beans at Winco. I will get about 5 servings out of this pot. Comes out to about $.30 a serving. Yummy, healthy, easy and cheap! I used this recipe: https://www.momskitchenhandbook.com/recipes/slow-cooker-pinto-beans-make-a-meal/ My slow cooker cooked them to perfection in 5 hours. I think it cooks hotter than some slow xookets. Only thing I added was about 2 teaspoons garlic salt at the end. Life does not need to be complicated, expensive or stressful. Today, I am celebrating my pot of bea...

Hooping:  Day 311 Wow!  I have fallen way behind in my daily blogging!  I am most obsessed with practicing for the upcoming Magnificat performance. Plus, in continual prayer for my uncle and family in Texas, and my family member in crisis here in Portland.  Not to mention babysitting Gracie, teaching piano, hooping, eating and sleeping. Hardly time to breathe! But I would not feel right if I did not at least check in. Perhaps tomorrow the smoke will clear. Talk to you then! Love, Zita

Busy, busy me!  But I did find time to hoop....Day 310. Talk tomorrow! Love, Zita

Hooping:  Day 309 No time to blog today. I leave you with my daily hooping video! Talk to you tomorrow! Love, Zita

Back in the hoop today!  It felt so good. And I slept like a log again last night!  I am still drinking about 2 liters of water a day.  And unplugging at night. I am finishing up a course of antibiotics. My nurse practitioner is determined to break this cough/asthma cycle.   It feels so wonderful to breathe deeply. It also feels wonderful to be conscious the whole day!   I had an interesting walk to the bus stop this morning.  Today I was meeting my mom for breakfast.  She is an early bird, so I needed to leave the house before 7:00 a.m. to meet her. Unfortunately, the bus that runs in front of my house does not run after 6:30 p.m. weekdays. It does not run at all on the weekend! So I have to walk 1 mile to the nearest bus stop. I had been listening to my online Classical Music class that I was taking from  Yale University.  But I finished the course.  I am quite sad. It was an amazing class a...