Week Thirty-Six in Review

So, I didn't get a post done this weekend.  I was otherwise occupied on Saturday and just too dadgum lazy yesterday after worship to do it.  So, it got pushed to Monday.  Week 36 was quite similar to the last several.  I'm settling in to a nice routine at work and really enjoying what I do.  It's obvious people appreciate the work we do and it's important for Georgia's children.  That makes getting up and coming to work each day a pleasure.  It's also nice to work for an organization that values its employees and wants to make us better in our roles.  I'm in a seven-month management course and our first real class was Friday.  The entire focus of the class was making sure your managing style matches where your employee is with a particular project - avoiding over-managing or under-managing.  It was great to hear from other new managers on the struggles they are facing - I know I'm not alone in the "what have I gotten myself into" thoughts that creep in on occasion.  So thankful for the opportunities - these are classes that would cost hundreds if not thousands in the outside world.

Sarah and I had a wonderful time at The King and I on Saturday evening.  We began the evening with wonderful traditional, authentic Mexican food at Escorpion down near the Fox.  It wasn't your typical tacos, enchiladas and grease special.  These were small taco plates that were amazing combinations of meats and spices.  I had one that was a beef concoction that was simply amazing and one that was grilled fish.  It was a bit spicy for my taste but still really, really good.  We both enjoyed the performance at the Fox though people need to learn you stay seated after the show has begun (you don't NEED popcorn and coke) and you stay through the curtain calls.  It's RUDE to leave the show while the audience is still showing its appreciation to the actors on stage.  Traffic's not going anywhere, stay in your seats!  Okay, rant over. :-)

I've been thinking a lot this week about contentment.  It's funny how God brings you thoughts in bunches.  Contentment was what yesterday's sermon was on too.  I say I'm content with my life but what does that really, REALLY mean?  I do find times (probably more often than I even realize) when I compare my life to someone else's.  I'm not as pretty as they are, why am I not married/don't have kids, why don't I have a house, etc.  The list is endless quite honestly.  My pastor yesterday brought it home by highlighting the fact that being discontent and comparing yourself to someone else means you don't trust the sovereignty of God.  Whoa, talk about a perspective change!  I've been chewing on that comment now for almost 24 hours and still am not 100% sure how to fully apply it to my life.  Definitely food for thought.

In other news, I finished one of the best fiction books I've read in a long time, Dee Henderson's newest, Full Disclosure.  I think I put off finishing it because I didn't want it to end.  It's that good.  Look for the review in the next day or two.  I'm reminded when I come across good books how much I love to read.  I've had a library card since I was two and I wear mine out each year.  It's such a joy to lose yourself in a book. Sadly, not everyone can read or read with any proficiency.  My friend Brooke over at iblog4books listed these statistics as part of Literacy Week:

• Literacy is learned. Illiteracy is passed along by parents who cannot read or write.
• One child in four grows up not knowing how to read.
• 43% of adults at Level 1 literacy skills live in poverty compared to only 4% of those at Level 5
• 3 out of 4 food stamp recipients perform in the lowest 2 literacy levels
• 90% of welfare recipients are high school dropouts
• 16 to 19 year old girls at the poverty level and below, with below average skills, are 6 times more likely to have out-of-wedlock children than their reading counterparts.
• Low literary costs $73 million per year in terms of direct health care costs. A recent study by Pfizer put the cost much higher. 

Celebrate Literacy Week by picking up a book.  I know I plan to!  I'm not as ambitious as Brooke and her 1,000 page goal but I plan to aim for 500.

Two book reviews to come and more next week!