A friendly letter

Dear Match.com,

I am moderately to severely offended by the volume of email I receive from you on a daily basis. Are you in some kind of sordid partnership with American Family Association? Because they are equally out of control with the unsolicited emailing. Or, maybe just generally equally out of control.

I'm going to operate under the assumption that you are working together. And I would also make the claim that you are in cahoots with Endless Pools, but I'll be honest and admit that although they need to slow their roll, that first email was...solicited. Can you blame me for wanting to know if the pools have a deadly current?

Back to my point. You should know that I am not interested in internet dating. Sure, I'm 29 and single, but come on. I have much more effective means of finding love. Don't you watch The Bachelorette??!! Also Craigslist listings. And I have never had trouble attracting international students. So I have no time for you.

Now since you're obviously linked up with AFA, I would also like to make clear that I am not interested in boycotting all of society. I know you are "Rightly Concerned: Cautiously Observing the Left, From the Right" but really, who cares if Home Depot calls you a liar? Why waste your time and resources proving them wrong? That's gay.

Let's kill two birds with one stone and remove me from this email list, shall we?

Thanks guys.

Fondly,
Claire

A perfect late summer recipe

While I could (and maybe should) be blogging about some of the weightier things that have been occupying my mind of late, I'm not because I'm just TIRED. Since school started, working days for me have been pretty much 7:15 on the nose to 6:30 or 7 each night. And all during the day basically all I hear is "Miss Hardin!! Miss Hardin!! MISS HARDIN!!!!!!!!!!!" I forgot how absolutely sick of hearing my own name I can get. Turns out 7th graders have A LOT more questions than 8th graders. And more often than not it's a question that I have quite literally answered no more than 5 minutes prior.

So what I would love to share tonight is what I think is my favorite recipe I've made all summer...I would love to give credit where credit is due, but I don't remember where I found this. I certainly did not make it up myself. Wish I could do that.

I'm not one for exact measurements when I cook, so know that all measurements are approximate.

Summer Veggie Tostadas

1 chicken breast
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp cumin
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1 c chopped zucchini
1 c chopped white onion1 c fresh corn
1/2 c green salsa
2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
whole wheat tortillas

1. Combine salt, pepper, and cumin and mix well
2. Sprinkle evenly over chicken breast
3. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat4. Saute chicken, about 3 minutes on each side
5. Transfer chicken from skillet to plate and shred
6. Return chicken to the skillet and add corn, onion, and zucchini - saute about 2 minutes, or until chicken is done
7. Stir in salsa and cilantro, cook 2 more minutes
8. Line baking sheet with tortillas and spray with non-stick cooking spray or spray butter
9. Broil tortillas until lightly browned (I cut the tortillas into triangles)
10. Remove from oven and spoon chicken & veggie mixture over tortillas11. Top with shredded cheese & broil again till cheese is melted
12. Sprinkle w/ more cilantro

And here's what you'll end up with...

You could skip the broiling step for soft tacos. Either way, it's FANTASTIC. Very highly recommend for a last jaunt with summer veggies before fall sets in, which I'm guessing will be late October around here based on the weather we've been having.

Have a good one, folks...I'm off for a shower, a glass of sauvignon blanc, and some good reading to cap off my last night at 28...that's right, tomorrow is the first day of the last year of my beloved twenties. RIDICULOUS.

I'm wrestling...

**update**

I've got a little window of time for a short update!

I'm now in Montgomery at Common Ground.

It's really good here, but leaving New Orleans was a little dramatic - staying w/ a family with small children = dramatic exit, evidently. I found out kind of at the last minute exactly when I would be packing my bags & heading to Montgomery, so when I got the word and had to load up and head out, the tears flowed.

This is not a hyperbole. Once Biggie, the four year old, started crying and asking me not to leave, I lost it. Then Tyler, nine, started crying but trying not to show her tears, which made everything worse. Basically Biggie clung to me and collapsed in my lap in a heap of sobs begging me not to leave. Look at him - would YOU have been able to leave this face with dry eyes?Impossible.

I almost called Mo and said forget it, I'm staying here.

Here are all three of them - Biggie's four, Tyler's nine, and Hakeem (Keemie) is about 14 months. They are in the process of adopting him - his mother left him at a corner store and they found him there. It's heart-wrenching, but beautiful how this family didn't even consider handing him over to the state - they immediately brought him home and pursued custody.

Me and Keemie (above) and Tyler and me below at Sampson Park in the Ninth Ward right before her championship softball game.Keemie in front of their apartmentTyler and me making cupcakes at an obscene hour of the night to sell in front of Winn Dixie to raise money for her track meet (she's going to the junior olympics - this girl is ranked tenth in the nation right now!!)Some of the kids at Dwana's new ministry, Desire for ChangeSome of Tyler's teammates at Sampson Park before the gameThere's been entirely too much going on this month for me to really be able to blog about it like I'd hoped, but I did want to stop in today and post something that many of you may have read if you read RZIM's Slice of Infinity. I wanted to post it because it hints at a chunk of what I've been wrestling with via scripture and this book which is a favorite among those I'm reading.

In this context it is at once blowing my mind AND making so much sense.

Cultivators of Culture
Margaret Manning

I am a gardener. When I say that I am a gardener, I mean that I love working with soil, pruning, weeding, planting, and tending to whatever plot of earth I've been afforded in the hopes of nurturing growth. I do not always produce a bountiful harvest, but I love the sense of craft, care, and cultivation that goes into making a beautiful garden.

In my current locale, I have been made the steward of gardens that were planted long before I ever arrived on the scene. My landlords have left me in charge of caring for the well-designed garden beds of various flowers, trees, and now a small vegetable garden. I have been entrusted to sustain, nourish, and cultivate the yard that has been placed in my care.

On a recent trip, I was quite dismayed by the amount of litter that lined the streets and sidewalks. Once or twice, I would see city workers sweeping and cleaning up the debris, but I was struck by the fact that as they cleaned many others were cavalier about continuing to toss garbage right in the path where others were picking it up. I was incensed at this disregard for the public spaces and for those who were tasked with cleaning them.

My own neighborhood often suffers from the same disregard. Often, litter is scattered across the sidewalks and streets. Yet, despite my anger and frustration over this problem, most of the time, I do not stop to exercise the same care and stewardship as I do over my own yard. Rarely do I take the time to pick up the trash that mars the landscape. Indeed, I often fail to make the connection between my own lack of care and attention and the anger or frustration I feel over its prevalence and the cavalier attitude of those who litter in the first place.

Perhaps this serves as an analogy for the stewardship of culture itself. Unfortunately, as writer Gregory Wolfe suggests, "Many Christians have allowed themselves to become so estranged from contemporary culture that they have essentially given up any hope of influencing the artists who will create the visual images, stories, and music that shape our time."(1) Indeed, Wolfe goes on to wonder if Christians have ever applied the concept of stewardship to the wider culture. He argues that the Christian often fails to realize the connection between his own despair and anger over the "demise" of culture, and his own unwillingness to exercise stewardship, care, and responsibility for that culture.

Regardless of one's religion worldview, a lack of involvement in the culture often contrasts sharply with the stewardship we assume over the resources we've been given in our families, our gifts, and our talents. We tend to our "own yards" as it were, yet ignore the larger landscape. Yet, for the Christian, an added dimension of responsibility is inherent in our entrustment as caretakers for God's creation. A vital part of this mission involves tending to culture, just as we would cultivate the land or soil in preparation for growing crops or plants. So what might this cultural cultivation entail?

First, we exercise cultural stewardship by becoming familiar with our culture through art, music, literature and film. How does one speak into a culture without the knowledge of its language? One need not see, read, or listen to every movie, art exhibit, book, or piece of music in order to learn how to speak into culture. Rather, what are the cultural works that stir discussion in our churches, at our workplaces, or in our social settings? These might be voices to whom we listen as we engage with the language of the gospel.

Second, we exercise cultural stewardship by recovering the doctrine of the Incarnation. The Incarnation of Jesus suggests the total union of the human and divine. Wolfe notes that we apply this Incarnational balance to many of our theological concepts, holding together in union God's justice and God's mercy, God's sovereignty, and human responsibility.(2) In a similar manner, the Incarnation serves as a plumb line for our engagement with the various voices of our culture. If we simply enter into cultural engagement without spiritual discernment, we are driven here and there by every trend and twist in our culture. However, if we remove ourselves from all cultural engagement, we lose our ability to communicate and speak to the culture lacking the vocabulary of faith.

Finally, the Christian exercises cultural stewardship by remembering that she is made in the image of the God who creates. All that God created, God declared "good." Human sin "pollutes" God's good creation. But as God's image-bearers, doing nothing about this pollution is not an option. As image-bearers, the call is to seek out ways in which we can create meaning and beauty, justice and righteousness in our world. We bear witness to the good God and God's good creation by being cultural creators and not simply cultural despisers.

In other words, we ought not simply see the trash of culture and do nothing about it. Instead, as image-bearers, God calls us to pick it up along the way as a part of tending and cultivating a culture that values beauty, goodness, and truth.

Thank you, garmin

For getting me to my destination. Without you I'd be in Canada somewhere trying to speak French.

I did make it to Tallahassee last night, and all is well...so far, it's looking like this month may be the kind of experience that will shape and structure just about everything that comes after it.

I've decided to stick to email for detailed updates, prayer requests, etc rather than putting them on the blog - I sent the first email a few minutes ago. If you didn't receive the email and would like to keep up with what's going on here, please leave a comment & let me know along with your email address.

Happy 4th, all!

leadership, preparing to leave birmingham, and my battle with raw chicken

Last weekend I had opportunity to accompany some students from Restoration Academy on a leadership retreat at Children's Harbor (an AMAZING facility for children with disabilities and their families - I saw a paraplegic waterskiing!! Incredible!) on Lake Martin.
The RALS (Restoration Academy Leadership Society), a group of 11 RA juniors and seniors spent the weekend looking at leadership - what a Christian leader looks like vs. what the world says a leader looks like. They did lots of team building exercises, enjoyed the pool, lake, karaoke, games, and each other.
I loved my time with them, and it was really cool to see the way the kids TRULY worked together as a team. This is a group of kids that really love each other, and you can see it plainly just after spending one afternoon with them. There's no doubt in my mind at all that this group's leadership and love for one another will positively impact Restoration and its student body for the long term.
On another note, as much as I'm looking forward to spending July in Tallahassee, preparing to leave Birmingham for a month is a lot sadder than I expected. I kind of teared up at my last church service 'till August, I'm dreading saying goodbye to folks here, and let's not even talk about how much I'll miss Pippi. I'm starting to pack up for a Saturday early a.m. departure.

I'll be updating the blog (hopefully) from Tallahassee, so if you're interested in what's going on there, check back!
Good times until I leave Saturday - dear friend Laura came to visit for a couple days, which was great - both of us had to get semi-major work done on our cars, though, which meant empty wallets and confinement to the house. We didn't mind - Laura's one of those friends you have a blast doing nothing with.

And tonight I get to see Kate, Will, & baby Elodie. I'm taking dinner over there tonight, hence the chicken part of this post title. Raw chicken and I don't get along.


So when I got out my mallet to pound the mess out of these chicken breasts, I was braced for disaster. Let's just say I'll be discovering and cleaning up bits of raw chicken all over my kitchen for um, awhile. It's worth it, though, for chicken parmigiana. And especially for Kate & Will.Here I am eating the excess when I got home from Kate's...see? Chicken hates me. It's a general malice and it gets me every time I mess with it. Don't ask how this happened.

Kind of a scattered update here, but check back to keep up with what's going on down at Rebirth International. I can't wait.

let's discuss...

...what is more disturbing.

1. The sheer size of this summer squash

2. What I'm assuming is the display for their science fair project (giving the benefit of the doubt here)

Or 3. I have nothing to say here except what would it take for you to agree to pose for a picture like this?!!

Patty @ the Ryman and a crazy trail run

Does anyone else feel like summer is slipping right through your fingers?


The concert last night was BEAUTIFUL. The Ryman is officially my favorite concert venue of all time (but I've not been to Bonaroo yet.)

Here's a little treat for you:



I'm going to go ahead and put this out there so I'll know you all know about it and I'll feel like a wuss if I change my mind: I'm going to start running again. Since I started teaching 4 years ago, running has felt nigh unto impossible for my lack of energy after working hours.

But two friends and I are taking on the XTerra Trail Run Series national championship trail run in Bend, Oregon in September. It goes without saying that I have no business taking on a national championship trail run. Much less in Oregon, the running capital of the world.

At least gorgeous scenery will surround me as I run/puke at the same time...and maybe, just maybe I'll make it over to Hayward Field to run in the footsteps of Prefontaine before I come home.

Life to-do list item #8...check.