What To Drink?

I’m ready to call Uncle! when it comes to drinking, but I’m thirsty.

I drink Diet drinks; in fact, I couldn’t tell you that last time I drank a sugared carbonated beverage. For years I’ve been sent numerous forwards about Nutrasweet causing headaches, pain, etc. and even putting people into comas! Those forwards, as most are, are not true, and I just ignored them. For every study that says drinking diet drinks make you crave sweets, etc. there are the same number of studies that say that isn’t true.

I also use an artificial sweetener for coffee and tea as well. So, I drink a lot, but I’m not taking in calories from my drinks.

Last week GMA had a story that made me think made since. Purdue U. did a study that showed that taking in artificial sweeteners trains the brain that the sweet taste equals no calories so that when you do eat a sweet with calories, the body doesn’t know what to do with those calories. OK, that isn’t exactly the abstract for the study, but it is the way I understood it.

All last week I really thought about it when I would eat or drink something with an artificial sweetener. I even thought I’d try to drink the coffee at work black, but it was pretty bitter. I even put in just a smidgeon of sugar to hopefully take off some of the bite. I also made an effort to drink more water even though I already drank water as well.

Especially in a restaurant where water can have very different tastes, I like to squeeze a little lemon. This weekend I get an e-mail with this attached.

Arghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! What is left to drink???

Winter

A true Michigander recently said this is the most bizarre winter. We average about 65" of snow in a winter, and this year we have had over 80" so far. Last Sunday the high was 7 degrees and we got several inches of blowing snow. It was probably the worst winter weather I've driven in because of whiteouts. Almost every school in the area was closed on Monday.

Today is a high of 42, the sun is shining and it's raining dreadfully hard. We will probably lose quite a bit of the snow today and all the standing water on the roads will freeze tonight into sheets of ice. And the forecast calls for 1-2" of snow tonight, 1-3" tomorrow, and 2-4" tomorrow night. That means we will have anything from 0-24".

I’ve been listening to some sermons lately of various speakers I’ve enjoyed through the years. I was listening to a sermon I heard on 12/24/06 from a series called Wise Women of Christmas. I appreciated the sermon because it was the first that didn’t come across as a married man being uncomfortable talking about singleness.

The text for the sermon was Luke 2:36-38.

36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. [5] She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

It is interesting that even though Anna was a widow her father’s name and her tribe’s name were mentioned but not her husband’s. Also, it is not mentioned if she had children. The minister pointed out how too often in today’s church a woman is measured by her having a husband and children yet even though Anna had a husband God didn’t see a need to have her identified by that in Scripture.

A Poem

My Morning Commute

Dedicated to the only person who will truly get this.

Snow to the left.
Snow to the right.
Snow in the front.
Snow in the back.
Snow, snow, snow.

Books I've Been Reading

I like to read; I just don't do it as much as I would like. However, in the last year I've worked at reading more and completing several books I've started. I like a variety of books. When I consider what I read and have read, I realize that I have done very little with the classics. I had a gift card to a bookstore that is not in Michigan so over Christmas I used it in Alabama when I was home. I found an compilation of Jane Austen's seven novels. Before I began it there were two books I wanted and needed to finish. (John Grisham's An Innocent Man and Hand of Providence by Mary Beth Brown).












Last night I began Pride and Prejudice while watching the Lady Vols of Tennessee take a controversial victory from Rutgers. So far into chapter 4, so good.

A New Day of Blogging

I've put a message on my Xanga that I'm now posting on blogspot. I don't expect more traffic, but this just seems easier for posting and reading.

My posts won't change; they tend to be random and probably often irrelevant. However, there is something interesting and challenging about putting thoughts on paper or rather a screen.

Two blogs

Obviously, I'm not doing very much to learn more about blogspot and posting here instead of xanga.

Today my church celebrated its 75th anniversary with several big events scheduled throughout the year. I'm sure it would all be more interesting to me if I had more than 3 years with the church.