A Catch-Up, and A Christmas Story

Apologies for my absence from this blog! So many exciting things are happening, I haven't had the time or energy to write! Some topics:

1. My job is busy! I work with a half-dozen doctors and about two dozen support staff, doing HR and finance and scheduling duties, and I'm just getting the hang of the job. I was hired just a week before the University of Minnesota declared a "hiring pause" because of budgetary issues. A week after that, the state of Minnesota made official a "hiring freeze". And now the governor of Minnesota has just released a nearly-balanced state budget (which would be a good thing) which cuts the University's funding dramatically (which is a really bad thing). Consequently, layoffs may be coming soon. I'm praying that, despite my lack of seniority, my job will be spared. I cannot, I CANNOT loose this job.

2. I'm going to start taking graduate classes this semester! Finally! One of the many amazing benefits offered by the U of M to employees is FREE classes. I'm going to slowly-but-surely work on earning a graduate degree or two. I want a real career, hopefully within this University system, that will ensure I won't be so professionally unstable as I have been in the past. I learned a lot with all my experimenting, but now I'm ready to learn by staying still - if I can.

3. Minnesota is really cold. There was a week when it was -25F for several days in a row. It's not as cold as Hokkaido, I grant you, but it's still really quite shocking. Thankfully, our trusty little Prius and the Twin Cities Metro Transit get me all over town.

4. I'M GETTING MARRIED! Planning a wedding takes a lot of effort; more than I imagined. I thought that because I am not so concerned about many of the little unnecessary details/purchases involved in an American wedding, therefore I wouldn't have much to worry about. Little did I know how all of society's expectations about what my wedding should be, really affect my planning. I have to sift through so many cultural expectations, and extract the ones that we really want to use to celebrate. This is really part of my re-acculturation back into America.

5. Our President is Barack Obama!!!!!!!! I am overjoyed, hopeful, prayerful, awed, excited, relieved, and grateful. I donated some money and time door-knocking and phone-calling, but I certainly wasn't as active as so many citiczens in this great nation. I am so PROUD of us for choosing such a good person as President! I am so relieved and hopeful that the Bush/Cheney administration are gone (but wish them to prison, most expediently, for their war crimes and lies). I'm proud that our government is relatively stable and peaceful in exchange of leadership. I have cried so many tears in the last months, in gratitude for Obama's election and inaguration. And I'm so happy about the changes that have already happened this week: equal pay for equal work, supporting reproductive choices, raising emissions standards, and keeping to the rule of law regarding torture! Oh, and also, have you noticed that our new Prez is kinda hotttt?


6. Did I tell you we went to Europe over Christmas and New Year's?!? I haven't written much about it at all, and really need to catch up. Thankfully, my dear friend Amber has written a nice account of Christmas in her home in the Netherlands. Please excuse my appearance in her jammies and slippers and bed-hair; a bit embarrassing. But isn't my Goddaughter Gracie cute!?

I'll do a blog post later about our trips to Germany and Belgium. Promise!

TORTURE

From the good people at "Faithful America":

After years of denials and euphemisms, (remember "enhanced interrogation techniques"?), a Bush Administration official finally admitted that the U.S. has tortured prisoners in its custody.

Whatever you call it, the abuse needs to stop.

Sign our letter to President-Elect Obama calling for an executive order banning torture.

Years after initial reports of abuse surfaced, accounts from Guantanamo Bay are still shocking. Susan Crawford, the administration official in charge of reviewing practices at Guantanamo told the Washington Post:

"The techniques they used were all authorized, but the manner in which they applied them was overly aggressive and too persistent. . . . You think of torture, you think of some horrendous physical act done to an individual. This was not any one particular act; this was just a combination of things that had a medical impact on him, that hurt his health. It was abusive and uncalled for. And coercive. Clearly coercive. It was that medical impact that pushed me over the edge" to call it torture.

Clearly, government officials at many levels were involved in authorizing torture. As Crawford states though, "the buck stops at the Oval Office."

That's why we need to make sure signing an executive order to ban torture is a top priority for President-Elect Obama once he takes office.

Tell President-Elect Obama to ban torture.

Torture is not only a violation of what our faiths tell us is the inherent dignity of all people, but it's also ineffective and makes prosecuting dangerous individuals more difficult.

It needs to stop. Now.

Sign the petition.

Thank you for all you do,

Beth, Katie, Dan, Kristin and Jennifer

The Faithful America Team

Happy New Year!

We spent New Year's Eve in Belgium, exploring Brussels before returning to our base in Leuven. We ended the evening in a throbbing crowd of townspeople and university students in the Oude Markt of Leuven/Louvain, at a Euro-style techno party. See our video of it here.

The most remarkable moment of the party was when they played a mix of techno-beats with Barack Obama's acceptance speech! The crowd went wild, and we were brought to tears. We listened to probably 5 minutes of the speech, layered with music, enveloped by the European crowd. What a surprise! The Europeans, and people all over the world, rejoice for the change that this New Year might bring. They cheered wildly. This can be the end of a greedy, evil presidential era. Bush was shame for America, a war criminal, and a scourge on the planet. But now comes the possibility for renewal and hope, even with the challenge of transformative change. A few quotes from President-Elect Obama:

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer...

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

Food: Chocolate, Beer, Waffles, Cheese!

On the road again....

We traveled over the holidays again this year; last year to Thailand, this year to Europe. The impetus was to spend time with my best friend Amber and her husband Adam, and their daughter (my goddaughter) Mary Grace. They live on the Eastern side of the Netherlands, in a town called Hengelo. We also visited Germany and Belgium.

Besides quality time with our friends, the next-most-important thing was to sample the fare!



Ooooo the Belgian chocolate!

The seafood is rather famous in Belgium.

In Germany our friend ordered 'bacon bread' -- we were curious as to what it would be. It turned out to be many thin slices of bacon (Euro-style bacon, not like American - closer to thin 'Canadian bacon' as we would call it) piled on top of nice bread. With pickles.

The same German restaurant served creamy ice cream and cherries (so flavorful, not canned crap) over a delicate waffle.

Dutch cheese is varied and absolutely delicious. And a little challenging to the uninitiated gastrointestinal tract. Our favorites were pesto cheese and walnut cheese, but clove/cumin or classic smoked gouda were good too.

The Dutch eat fries with mayo, and shockingly lots of it. If you'd rather not have mayo, they have an excellent curry-flavored ketchup. I even brought some curry ketchup home.


We also sampled a few beers along the way... Maybe you've heard of Belgian beers? ;) Less rules than the Germans in their brewing practices, resulting in phenomenal variety and flavor. Um, yeah. I literally went to bed at night saying grateful prayers for the artists at the breweries who made such incredible beers. Some of these recipies were created 900 years ago, seriously.


Probably my favorite beer in the land.

This beer is named after St. Bernard, the saint for which my grade school was named.

There are several suggestive poses of me with this particular beer. . . I must have really enjoyed.

They do raspberry and cherry beers like nothing you've ever dreamed of. Delicious.

And for every beer there is a special glass to compliment the flavors. This innovative glass had a bulbous bottom, so that when you got toward the end of the beer, the flavor of the less-aerated beer at the bottom changed entirely. Outstanding.

Cheers!

Recipe: Holiday Cookies

My old favorite holiday cookie, from Mom:

Melting Moments

2/3 c cornstarch
1 c flour
1 c butter
1/3 c powdered sugar

Sift flour and cornstarch together. (This step is important, so there are no lumps and the batter is light and airy.) Cream butter; add sugar and cream until fluffy. Add flour/cornstarch mixture. Roll into small balls and keep chilled.
Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes.

Make a powdered sugar frosting. If desired, divide the frosting to make different batches of flavored frosting: Add food coloring and almond/lemon/peppermint/vanilla extracts to each colored frosting. Drizzle frosting over baked cookies.


My newest favorite cookie, from Jennifer:

Chewy Chocolate Cherry Cookies

1 c flour
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c sugar
1/2 c butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 large egg
2/3 c dried cherries
3 tbsp chocolate chips (or more)

Combine dry ingredients. Cream sugar and butter. Add vanilla and egg. Gradually add dry ingredients. Stir in cherries and chips. Drop by tablespoon.
Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Cool on pans 5 minutes.