Baked Golden, With a Pinch of Salt
People in Kirkland (and the northwest in general) are health nuts, or if they aren’t, they’re at least health-nuttier than the rest of the country. I’ve been here for a while, and I’m starting to dig the whole local-produce, organic-fruits-and-veggies, high-fructose-corn-syrup–free vibe, but the issue has polarized our group of friends: some people are totally down with better eating, some get upset when, say, Matt and Lisa bring banana nut flax seed bread as a dessert to a movie night.
On my way to take Laura home that evening, we started talking about healthy alternatives to popular snacks that would horrify our guests. One thing lead to another, and we imagined the following scene played out when some friends came to visit:
LOCATION SHOT: CALEB and LAURA’S APARTMENT
JEFF and PAULA enter the apartment, visiting for the first time. CALEB greets them and takes their raincoats. LAURA offers them a seat and takes drink requests. JEFF and PAULA have a seat on the COUCH. LAURA returns with drinks and a bowl of finger foods.
LAURA: Would you guys like some snacks?
JEFF: I would love a snack!
JEFF tastes the OFFERED SNACK. It is SWEET and SQUISHY. It is NOT WHAT HE EXPECTED.
JEFF: What is this!? This is sweet and squishy! This is not what I expected!
LAURA, GLEEFULLY: It’s a squash tot!
Okay, so I’m no playwright, but I just saw a recipe for Potato Croutons on 101Cookbooks. Can our dream of tasty, baked, squash snack be far behind?
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Late-Night Clarity
With broken heart and contrite sigh,
A trembling sinner, Lord, I cry;
Thy pard’ning grace is rich and free:
O God, be merciful to me!I smite upon my troubled breast,
With deep and conscious guilt oppressed,
Christ and His cross my only plea:
O God, be merciful to me!Far off I stand with tearful eyes,
Nor dare uplift them to the skies;
But Thou dost all my anguish see:
O God, be merciful to me!Nor alms, nor deeds that I have done,
Can for a single sin atone;
To Calvary alone I flee:
O God, be merciful to me!And when, redeemed from sin and hell,
With all the ransomed throng I dwell,
My raptured song shall ever be,
O God, be merciful to me!
Text by Cornelius Elven (1791-1873); here’s a recording as performed by The Northern Conspiracy at Mars Hill Church in Seattle.
Tags: hymns, mars hill church
