Cyborg.

         

            The Christmas season has come upon us and passed by so quickly... as it does every year. I was planning on writing this blog earlier...but I was too busy eating cookies. This year I have been fascinated by the cyborg element of Christmas.           
             Typically when we think of the word cyborg, images of half machine-half humans come to mind. However this term really just means the human body in direct collaboration with something else. According to theories by Derrida and Harraway it can include a blending with animal body parts such as a primate heart in a human body. It can even include our use of language (an invented tool) that allows us to think and speak. I want to take that concept a little bit farther and include Jesus as a cyborg, a blending of two things.
           
            Yahweh had unlimited options of how to get his son on earth: he could have materialized him at age 30, he could have had him be mary and joseph's son, or he could have had him arrive in a whirlwind of fire. But instead, he chose to partner WITH humanity. He overshadowed Mary and created his son as a hybrid of humanity and divinity, fully God and fully human.
         
           This is the supreme example of what he wants his church to look like. Ever since pentecost Jesus' followers have been cyborgs, fully human and yet filled with God in the person of the Holy Spirit. Our physical bodies are temples for God. God is not interested in doing everything for you while you sit on the couch. God is certainly not interested in you doing everything for him while he sits on the couch. Instead he is looking for a marriage.
         
         He called his church his bride for a reason, he wants to do things WITH us. When Mary partnered with God it created the most beautiful thing this earth has ever seen, Jesus. In this next season, let's partner with God and see what beautiful cyborgs (partly God, partly human) we can birth.
           

Songs of Freedom

In Your Arms

by, Meredith Andrews

I’m turning the world off
Embracing the silence
Walking away from all the voices
That are Screaming in my ear

I've been too caught up
I've been so stressed out
All of the noise replaced the whisper
That used to be so clear

So I close every door
Put my face back on the floor

And I'm in Your arms
Where I belong
There's no other place for me
Than right where You are
Some things just don't change
When I call Your name
You never hesitate to wrap me in endless grace
When I'm in Your arms

I’m letting my fears go
Giving You control
For You are the one who holds me closer
In my soul's darkest night

Everything I see
Is so temporary
So help me to run the race before me
With eternity in sight

Now I close every door
Put my face back on the floor

To sit at Your feet
At Your table of mercy
To gaze on Your beauty, my Lord
To drink from Your well
And be changed by Your glory
How could I ask for more
Jesus, how could I ask for more

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtB9sctwH-A

Drama queen...or...Poet?

My whole life I have been labeled:

“drama queen”

                                                             “overly sensitive”

            “dramatic”

Granted, some of those instances I really was just being a pain in the butt. However, a discussion I had in my M.F.A. poetry workshop tonight helped me see myself in a new light. Perhaps this hypersensitivity is a positive quality in my life and not something I should wish to brush under the doormat.

Writers, and poets more specifically, are keen observers, sensitive to the world around them, aware, and not asleep. This is not some fancy way of saying, “ all poets are super emotional.” Instead it is the highest compliment (which, yes, I am indulging in giving myself as a poet). Poets, as discussed in class, are watchers of the world, unafraid to point out the injustices, inconsistencies, and oddities. When most can turn a blind eye and deaf ear to an issue for “convenience” or “comfort” it is the poets sensitivity that will force those issues onto the page until they are heard loud and clear, their words perhaps opening the blind eyes and deaf ears. If I may be so bold as to use this verb, they must endure this sensitivity so that they can be watchtowers for society.

Poets are unafraid of asking questions of the ineffable, pushing beyond even what language can express. They can push beyond mortality, ask questions that stir souls, and baffle readers with an entire experience in a few words.

I’ll stop this self-congratulating now and commission writers out there:

Accept this sensitivity as a gift…

Push boundaries farther than you feel comfortable with…

Watch the world around you with everything you have….

Write the truth; write with complete presence of mind heart and soul…

It feels good to find a niche, to realize my personality plays into something I love. So from now on I am going to try and embrace my hypersensitivity and be happy to be a watcher and feeler of the world around me to the fullest extent.

Merry cheer and light,

Natalie

Can I getchya s'more cupcakes, ma'am?

There is nothing more American than toasting marshmallows over a campfire, squishing them between sweet honey graham crackers, and watching chocolate bars melt in the concoction. It screams of fall and camping and childhood memories to me. 


Soooo, when my nephew's first birthday party arrived and the theme was camping, I was on a search for the BEST  s'more cupcake recipe, and believe me, I've found it. They combine a rich chocolate cake, savory graham cracker crust, melted chocolate center, and light fluffy marshmallow frosting, perfection!

These babies are tedious to make, but (and I don't say this lightly) completely worth it. This might be the most delicious cupcake I've ever eaten. Cute too, right?

LET's GET STARTED!!

I've adapted them from foodbuzz.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)
 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
 1 teaspoon salt
 2 large eggs
 1 cup whole milk
 1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (this is a time consuming job, a few bigger chunks won't hurt the recipe a bit) 

AND THE WORK BEGINS....

1. Preheat the oven to 350 

 2. Mix the 2 cups & 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into the bowl of an electric mixer and mix ingredients together on low speed.

3. In a large bowl, mix together eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Add boiling water and stir to combine; set aside. 

4. Place graham cracker crumbs, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and melted butter in a large bowl; stir until well combined.

*I used a potato masher to smash graham crackers. After that experience I would say a food processor would be a much better idea. They don't need to be perfect, either way.

5. Place 1 overflowing tablespoon graham cracker mixture into the bottom of each prepared muffin cup. Use the bottom of a small glass to pack crumbs into the bottom of each cupcake liner. The remaining graham cracker mixture is for the topping.

 6. Place a thin layer of chocolate  over the graham cracker crust...it should cover the crust. Transfer to oven and bake until the edges of the graham cracker mixture are golden, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and fill each cup three-quarters full with cake batter. Sprinkle each with remaining chocolate and graham cracker mixture. Return to oven and bake, rotating pans halfway through baking, until tops are firm and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Let them cool for at least 10 minutes before removing.

MARSHMALLOW FROSTING,

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

 8 large egg whites
 2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 

THE WORK...

1. Place egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a saucepan with simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and whites are warm to the touch, 3 to 4 minutes. 

2. Transfer bowl to electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat, starting on low speed, gradually increasing to high, until stiff, glossy peaks form, 5 to 7 minutes. Add vanilla, and mix until combined. Use immediately. 

*If the frosting is runny try adding powdered sugar and meringue powder

Then add a piece of hershey's chocolate and a wedge of graham to garnish, it's just like camping! Without showering in a river!

Party idea:

I had a lot of leftover frosting so I made it a dip for "mini do it yourself s'mores" on a platter and people were loving it!

These are a lot of work but so worth it for this little guy:

Happy Birthday Carter!

Love,

Aunty Mongo

Chocolate Pear Tort

So, whenever autumn hits my fever for baking returns. And what says fall like pears? 

adapted from: 

http://confessionsoftart.blogspot.com/2009/11/chocolate-pear-tart.html

This recipe is super easy but actually was a bit too bland for my taste. I suggest adding 2 tbsp. of cinnamon and nutmeg to your water when you poach your pears, adding some kick to the chocolate custard with cinnamon, and dusting the top of the tort with a sugar and cinnamon mixture to give it that warm holiday taste. 


Also, just to keep things easy I used a frozen pie crust, but of course feel free to make your own crust dough.

For the poached pears
5 ripe Bosc pears
4-5 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
*add 2 tbsp cinnamon and 2 tbsp nutmeg for added kick


For the custard (from Once Upon a Tart)
6 ounces good semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
*add 1 tbsp cinnamon if desired

2 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp cinnamon to glaze (optional)

1.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Thaw the pie crust.

2. Next, peel, halve and core the pears. Bring 4-5 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar to a boil in a large saucepan and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Put in the teaspoon of vanilla extract and stir to combine. Gently place the pears in the water (add more water if needed to completely cover the pears), lower the heat, and cook at a low boil until the pears are just tender when pierced with a fork (but not mushy). For me, this was around the 10-15 minute mark. Drain the water and set the pears aside.

4. Whisk the egg and the egg yolk lightly in a medium-sized bowl. Add the vanilla and whisk to combine. In a double boiler (or a metal bowl set over an inch of gently simmering water so that the bowl bottom doesn't touch the water) melt the chocolate with the cream, stirring and folding with a heat-proof spatula to combine into a smooth and shiny ganache. Stir in the 1/4 cup sugar and cook a few minutes more, until the sugar has melted. Set aside to cool.

5.  Carefully transfer your pear halves to a cutting board and, holding each pear with one hand to keep it intact, carefully slice into thin slices. To fan out the pear slices, press the wide end of the pear gently towards the narrow end. Slide the knife under the fanned pears and arrange them in a circle inside the tart pan. As the tin becomes fuller make a double layer of pear slices

6. To make the custard, slowly dribble about 1/2 cup of the chocolate mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly. This warms the eggs, preventing them from cooking. Add the rest of the chocolate in a steady stream and stir to combine.

7. Pour the chocolate mixture into the tart pan, pouring as much as possible around the pears rather than on top of the pears. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until the chocolate custard is puffed and set (it will be firm to the touch and slightly cracked around the edges). Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

8. Remove the tart from the tart pan and slide onto a plate. If desired, brush the pears with a little bit of cinnamon and sugar and serve slightly warm with icecream and chai tea lattes


Mine didn't look at good as the picture of the finished product on the top of the blog, but yours may :) happy eating.

VICTORY...thanks grandpa.

A few months ago my grandpa passed away, today he gave me a gift.

I have BIG dreams in life, I want to change this place before I go, I want to make a difference and help people. I want to hold the victims of sex trafficking and let me them cry their stories until there is nothing left to be said, I want to feed the children in this world until they are full enough to run after the dreams they were created to fulfill, I want to love my husband with everything I am and be super woman for my children. I want to be a force to be reckoned with and a friend who can always be relied on. I want to be beautiful and loving and fierce and strong.

But today doubt crept in, I felt defeated, unworthy, and hopeless. Mostly I felt alone.

So what else was there to do? I prayed. I crawled into bed and cried, I wept and asked Jesus why I was still single, why I still have a crappy job, why I felt so small, and mostly just asked him to hold me. He did and I slept for a few minutes. when I woke something had shifted. I didn't feel great, I just felt like I wasn't going to give up. I turned on some worship music and just declared that He was big enough in me to do anything through me and WITH me. His love is so much bigger than anything we could ever fathom. How could I feel alone and unimportant? All those dreams I have of fairy tale romance are already true in my life...the prince I've always dreamed of, gave up everything and died for me so he could be with me. He is ravished by me!

I kept repeating "I am victorious! I am Victorious! I am victorious! I am victory! I AM victory!"

That was weird...why did I say I AM victory...like it was my name? And then I remembered a funny story my family always told growing up. When I was born my grandpa hated my name, he refused to call me natalie and for the first year of my life called me Victoria. We used to laugh about how weird and stubborn he was for doing that. But now, I've taken a different perspective.

Perhaps my grandpa felt something about me ...like that name was just right for me.

VICTORIA (1) Gender: Feminine Usage: English, Spanish, Romanian, Late Roman Pronounced: vik-TAWR-ee-ə (English)  [key] Feminine form of VICTORIUS, though later it was regarded as coming directly from Latin victoriameaning "victory". It was borne by a 4th-century saint and martyr from North Africa. Though in use elsewhere in Europe, the name was very rare in the English-speaking world until the 19th century, when Queen Victoria began her long rule of Britain. She was named after her mother, who was of German royalty.

---

VICTORIA (2) Gender: Feminine Usage: Roman Mythology Pronounced: vik-TAWR-ee-ə (English)  [key] Means "victory" in Latin. Victoria was the Roman goddess of victory. From a young age I had victory spoken over me...so, no matter what happens I will remember that I don't need to strive for victory, that in Christ it is just who I am. He who is victorious lives in me so I no longer need to struggle, I AM victory, I AM Victoria. So thank you PaPa for seeing something in me that I would one day need to be reminded of, for seeing victory in me when I was too small to show it.

Our beautiful Generation

This is a a new song...a song of our generation...

think about what answers 

::you have:: 

available to the             ..questions.. 

the people around you 

are asking.

Helplessness Blues

by, Fleet Foxes

I was raised up believing I was somehow unique

Like a snowflake distinct among snowflakes, unique in each way you can see

And now after some thinking, I'd say I'd rather be

A functioning cog in some great machinery serving something beyond me

But I don't, I don't know what that will be

I'll get back to you someday soon you will see

What's my name, what's my station, oh, just tell me what I should do

I don't need to be kind to the armies of night that would do such injustice to you

Or bow down and be grateful and say "sure, take all that you see"

To the men who move only in dimly-lit halls and determine my future for me

And I don't, I don't know who to believe

I'll get back to you someday soon you will see

If I know only one thing, it's that everything that I see

Of the world outside is so inconceivable often I barely can speak

Yeah I'm tongue-tied and dizzy and I can't keep it to myself

What good is it to sing helplessness blues, why should I wait for anyone else?

And I know, I know you will keep me on the shelf

I'll come back to you someday soon myself

If I had an orchard, I'd work till I'm raw

If I had an orchard, I'd work till I'm sore

And you would wait tables and soon run the store

Gold hair in the sunlight, my light in the dawn

If I had an orchard, I'd work till I'm sore

If I had an orchard, I'd work till I'm sore

Someday I'll be like the man on the screen