troy austian | blog

Thanksgiving Food Traditions

There are a lot of different traditions when it comes to food at Thanksgiving.  A wonderful family that I've had Thanksgiving with the past couple years has a couple food traditions that I hadn't run across before having Thanksgiving dinner with them.

Instead of a gravy, they make a thick noodle soup and use that to top off the traditional stuffing and mashed potatoes.  It pretty much serves the same purpose that gravy does, except with noodles!  It's an interesting twist for me, but for them it's the norm, and it's good.

For dessert, they have a family tradition more sacred than pumpkin pie.  They take a can of sweetened, condensed milk and boil it in water.  The content of the can becomes this thick, caramel colored pudding of sorts.  It's sweet, creamy, and very tasty!

I talked to someone else who said that their family tradition wasn't to have turkey, but ham.  Now that's just crazy.

Google Maps on My Treo

Not long ago, Palm announced marketing partnerships with Google, Yahoo!, eBay, and TypePad.  And so each of these new partners has or will be releasing one or more Treo-specific applications.  Google has released Google Maps Mobile optimized for the Treo.  It's really cool, fun, and practical.  You can look up maps on the go and also view satellite images, and you can overlay traffic information on either.  It'll give you step-by-step directions, updating the image (map or satellite view) as you go.  Really cool!  Here are some images to give you a better idea:

           

If you're reading this on your Treo, just go to http://google.com/gmm to install it now. And, of course, you can also access Google Maps on the web or try the Google Earth application on your PC.

Counting the Cost

I was at Best Buy in Eagan on Thursday getting some items for the church.  As I went in I noticed a number of small tents lined up on the sidewalk by the entrance.  I wasn't aware of the imminent and much anticipated release of the Sony PlayStation 3.  It was chilly out, and would be even colder at night, and these kids were camping out in order to be among the first to buy a PS3. "Wow," I thought, "couldn't they just be patient for a week or two and save themselves the cold night on the sidewalk!"  But it was worth it to them because of how badly they wanted a PS3.

I started thinking about what we'll do when our desire for something is so great that we'll sacrifice for it, and it made me think about how I live out my pursuit of God.

Jesus said, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost...." (Luke 14:26-28 NLT)

We often think about the price God paid for us, as we should with incredible gratefulness, but it's also vital that we count the cost so that we can live our life with the proper perspective.  We are not our own but bought at a high price, and there is something we seek that is without comparison...to know God, to be His, and to do His will.  This doesn't come without laying down our lives daily, and our stuff.  This doesn't come without cost, and nothing is more worth it.

The Apostle Paul wrote, "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him...."  (Philippians 3:7-9)

So whenever the PlayStation 4 comes out...and we see kids camping out to get something they want really badly, join me in being challenged.  What do those around me see me doing that shows how really badly I want to know Jesus and serve Him?

The Heat Is On

I've been having problems with the heat in my house.  Intermittantly, it would simply not work.  I'd get home in the evening and it'd be cold, or I'd wake up in the early morning just "freezing" at 10 degrees colder than what it was supposed to be.  This was really frustrating, and I hate being cold.  I've occasionally joked that for me hell would be cold.

I thought it was my thermostat, so I replaced it.  That didn't do the trick, so I realized it must be my furnace.  Fortunately, I have a service from the gas company called Home Service Plus that covers problems with my furnace.  I called them this morning and began the wait (since they might come any time between now and midnight).  Thankfully the technician arrived this afternoon and got it fixed.  So now my heat works again!  Woo hoo!  The heat is on!

This reminded me of how spoiled we are...how nice we have it.  It got cold overnight last night, but I bundled up in blankets and slept upstairs on my couch, and was just fine.  I wonder how much sympathy I'd get from someone who has no shelter, no couch...and no blankets.  I am blessed.  I'm blessed to be able to take so many things for granted.