7 Quick Takes Friday - Vol. 3

1.

There has been a chill creeping into the air as of late, a very welcome change from the 90 and 100 degree weather we've been having around here the past few months!  I am rejoicing in the temperature drop for many reasons, one of which is... it is now cool enough that I can drink tea again without overheating!  In celebration I picked up a few new flavors from the store to try, a vanilla caramel, mandarin orange spice and a chai spice tea.  The vanilla caramel and mandarin orange are fighting for the place of favorite tea right now.

2.

I realized the other day that as of next week I will have been working at the office for four months now!  On the one hand, it doesn't seem like it's been that long already, on the other I feel like I have been there much longer!  I am really enjoying working there, and I realized today that I now recognize almost everyone who walks in the door.  There are some very lovely people who come in, and while some days are stressful, it really is a fun and enjoyable place to work.

3.

Chilly weather and fall also means another one of my favorite things... pumpkin!  I have yet to bake my first pumpkin recipe, but I'm think I will be giving these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Cheesecake Frosting a try very soon.

4.

'Tis also the season for new season's of favorite TV shows.  My family and I have already begun watching the episodes of BBC's Doctor Who each Saturday.  Our viewing list will soon be joined by the new season of ABC's fairy tale drama Once Upon a Time, and from the glimpses I've seen in the trailer and photos of new characters, I think this promises to be a very good season.  OUAT really hit it's stride in the second half of the first season, turning out some brilliant episodes, and I hope that it continues with it's winning streak throughout all of the second season.  The new season of ABC's Castle is also starting up again soon, and as I have only seen a few of the episodes, my plans are to start watching the previous seasons and hopefully catch up before too much of season five goes by.

5.

For any writers out there, Ink and Fairydust - a bi-monthly emagazine that I assistant edit - is hosting a fiction contest.  Winners will get their works published in an upcoming issue of the magazine! We are accepting submissions of short stories (2400 words or less), poetry (1200 words or less), and comics (8.5x11 page or smaller). Just email any submissions to Submissions@inkandfairydust.com by November 1st!

-You must be an I&F subscriber to enter (Not a subscriber yet? Simply email Subscriptions@inkandfairydust.com!)

6.

A lesson in paying attention... an older gentleman came into the office the other day, and he was sampling some of the walnuts that a different patient had brought in from her tree.  He proceeded to tell us how the other day, he was eating almonds.  He had them sitting out on the table in front of him, and while he was eating, he took out his hearing aid and set it on the table as well, as he was going to change the battery.  He didn't do so right away, however, and as he was talking to his wife, he continued to eat his almonds.  Without looking down at the almond pile, he picked one up, put it in his mouth, bit down... and realized it was his hearing aide!  We all got quite the laugh out of that one... I wonder how he'll explain it when he orders a new one!

7.

At this weeks meeting of Spirit and Truth (a Catholic group for young adults) we got to hear a little bit of the vocation stories of two of the married couples in the groups.  They each shared how they met, and a little bit of what they experienced during dating.  It was a nice treat to get to hear their stories... as one of the couple's pointed out, you hear the vocation stories of priests or religious all the time, but it's not that often that married couples share theirs.  Yet marriage is just as an important of a vocation, and one that the majority of people are probably called to.  It was very helpful and encouraging to get to hear the stories of young, Catholic married couples for a change of pace.