7 Quick Takes Friday #63

See more 7 Quick Takes Friday contributions at Jennifer Fulwiler's Conversion Diary.

Thinking back on this week, it has centered around the most curious thing (at least, for me): food. All kinds of different food has been on my plates this week.


1. Spaghetti dinner at the VFW. Saturday evening, Donnie, Doah, and I hopped on down to the San Ignatio VFW, just a couple of minutes, perhaps less, from where we live to attend a fundraising dinner for our priest, who has ended up in the difficult position of being falsely accused of sexual misconduct by a recently released criminal who has taken him to court. The diocese has essentially cleared him, as have the local police, and no one else has come forward, but the criminal found a law firm known to crusade against priests, and now there is a civil case, which is going to be expensive and take some time to get past, during which the diocese will not let him continue his ministry although it is giving him a place to live and his salary. The diocese is not paying for the defense, so our parish is doing a series of fundraisers to help our priest to pay for his defense. Saturday night was one of them, and it was the first at which he was able to come and be with us. Everyone was very happy to see him. He is frustrated, of course, but he was clearly happy to be among us.



2. BBQ. On Sunday, we entertained the senior managers from my office at a BBQ at our new house. Even with almost 30 people here, it did not seem crowded. I think it has to do with being on the top of a hill and being able to see in all directions. Once a year we have such a BBQ for my senior managers. Given the stress of our jobs and the fact that we all travel and so do not see each other for periods of time even though we work together constantly (thank goodness for computers and other kinds of modern technology), these annual events are team building and rejuvenating.



3. Monday movie night. The second Monday of every month our prayer group meets our house to watch a spiritual movie. Usually, people bring a dish to share, but this week I begged them not to. We had so much left over from the BBQ that we still had drinks in the cooler on the deck and the refrigerator was stuffed. It was great to have people around to help use it up before it spoiled. We also saw a great movie: the biography of St. Faustina, a saint about whom I had known almost nothing until Monday night.



4. Plane eating. No, that it is not a misspelling. On Tuesday, I headed to Omaha. I ended up all day on the plane, eating plane food. I was lucky, though, and ended up being upgraded to first class. So, the food I got had two advantages: it was pretty good and, more important, it was free!



5. Dinner with a friend. My first night in Omaha I was met by a friend from Nebraska who works in the Middle East. In fact, that is where I met her (the Middle East). She is back for the summer and, quite by lucky surprise, I had a business trip spring up this week which allowed us to spend some time together. She and her niece picked me up at the airport, and then we headed up to a deli for a light dinner, a rather unusual salad with fruits, nuts, and vegetables. The best part, though, was the company.



6. Wednesday at Saigon. Wednesday evening co-workers and I found a restaurant called Saigon Surface in downtown Omaha. We had great fun there, chowing down on Vietnamese food, which I love, plying our chopsticks, and tasting some unusual drinks, such as a rychee martini, which was not a martini at all but a very tasty drink that combined vocka and rychee (the whole fruit). Yum!



7. Afghan food, yes! Today was even yummier. We had a bigwig from Afghanistan (Kabul) visit us, and some of the Pashtuns who work with me made some Afghan food so that we could have a culturally appropriate working lunch. With that kind of food, the work, too, becomes quite pleasant!

And now I wish you a pleasant and plentiful weekend!