How Could I Have Eaten This Garbage??

Here's another non-personal blog... I promise I'll actually write something sometime soon...
I didn't write this but I am reposting it. Whether you're religious or not, if you eat pork you should be aware of what you're eating. I'm not a Christian and I'm not using this to get on Christians' cases (although the original author I'm sure was)- it's strictly informatonal. If you aren't religious at least consider the nastiness factor...
Kristi
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The pig or is a very popular food item with most Christians. Yet the God they profess to believe in had condemned the eating of swine's flesh. The condemnation was based on some very sound biological principles. Here are some facts on pork that prove it to be a very unhealthy food to eat: A pig is a real garbage gut. It will eat anything including urine, excrement, dirt, decaying animal flesh, maggots, or decaying vegetables. They will even eat the cancerous growths off other pigs or animals. The meat and fat of a pig absorbs toxins like a sponge. Their meat can be 30 times more toxic than beef or venison. When eating beef or venison, it takes 8 to 9 hours to digest the meat so what little toxins are in the meat are slowly put into our system and can be filtered by the liver. But when pork is eaten, it takes only 4 hours to digest the meat. We thus get a much higher level of toxins within a shorter time. Unlike other mammals, a pig does not sweat or perspire. Perspiration is a means by which toxins are removed from the body. Since a pig does not sweat, the toxins remain within its body and in the meat. Pigs and swine are so poisonous that you can hardly kill them with strychnine or other poisons. Farmers will often pen up pigs within a rattlesnake nest because the pigs will eat the snakes, and if bitten they will not be harmed by the venom. When a pig is butchered, worms and insects take to its flesh sooner and faster than to other animal's flesh. In a few days the swine flesh is full of worms. Swine and pigs have over a dozen parasites within them, such as tapeworms, flukes, worms, and trichinae. There is no safe temperature at which pork can be cooked to ensure that all these parasites, their cysts,and eggs will be killed. Pig meat has twice as much fat as beef. A 3 oz T bone steak contains 8.5 grams of fat; a 3 oz pork chop contains 18 grams of fat. A 3 oz beef rib has 11.1 grams of fat; a 3 oz pork spare rib has 23.2 grams of fat. Cows have a complex digestive system, having four stomachs. It thus takes over 24 hours to digest their vegetarian diet causing its food to be purified of toxins. In contrast, the swine's one stomach takes only about 4 hours to digest its foul diet, turning its toxic food into flesh. The swine carries about 30 diseases which can be easily passed to humans. This is why God commanded that we are not even to touch their carcase (Leviticus 11:8). The trichinae worm of the swine is microscopically small, and once ingested can lodge itself in our intestines, muscles, spinal cord or the brain. This results in the disease trichinosis. The symptoms are sometimes lacking, but when present they are mistaken for other diseases, such as typhoid, arthritis, rheumatism, gastritis, MS, meningitis, gall bladder trouble, or acute alcoholism. The pig is so poisonous and filthy, that nature had to prepare him a sewer line or canal running down each leg with an outlet in the bottom of the foot. Out of this hole oozes pus and filth his body cannot pass into its system fast enough. Some of this pus gets into the meat of the pig. There are other reasons grounded in biological facts that could be listed to show why pigs and swine should not be eaten. But a true believer in Yeshua should only need one reason why not to eat this type of food- because God prohibited it. "And the swine, because it divides the hoof, yet does not chew the cud, it is unclean unto you: you shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase." - Leviticus 11:7,8; Deuteronomy 14:8 Those who say Yeshua abolished the law condemning pork are motivated by their stomach not Scripture. The problems with pork are biological, and Yeshua never changed the laws of biology

Moving?!?!

So, yes, we are moving. I guess I hadn't noticed before but southern CA kinda sucks. Most the friends I had here moved away, changed into people I don't really care for or just don't keep in touch. We don't like any of the congregations out here and it's too hot and too expensive. It's pretty much been an all-American let down, so we're moving on. This month we'll be moving back up to Washington. I'm beyond excited. I love WA. I love the climate, the smell, the nature-loving atmosphere and the congregation I attended while I lived there before. My pastor from WA married Malachi and I and we just love spending time with him and his wife. I'm going to head up in a couple weeks and Malachi will join me at the end of the month.
So that's all. If you live in WA you can come visit me. We will probably be in Everett (where I loved before) because it's cheap. I'll keep you all updated.
Kristi

That took a ridiculously long time and is now a little stressful...

So, in case you haven't heard, I'm pregnant. I'm very happy about it, as we've been trying for about 8 1/2 months. I have no clue how far along I am exactly, but I think it's somewhere in the 5-7 weeks range. Everybody said as soon as I stopped trying to get pregnant, I would and that's pretty much how it worked.
For months I checked fluids, took my temperature, charted my cycle and recorded everytime we had sex. It was so freaking irritating! Then eventually, I was like, "screw it!" and I stopped doing anything to check for fertility. Somewhere between then and now I got pregnant. Sigh.
It kinda sucks because if I had been charting I could have told you the exact day I conceived. However, I suppose its better ths way because I'll be less neurotic about the due date, since I don't know when I'm really due.
So here's a sticky situation-- Malachi and I have totally different notions of what's best for the baby. I'm waaaaay more crunchy than he is and its begining to pose a few problems.
Problem 1: I want to do my own prenatal care at home and to get a doula or midwife in a few months to help monitor things and attend our birth in an observatory manner. I really want to allow my body to do what God designed it to do (grow and deliver a baby), without a bunch of interference. Malachi wants me to get an ob-gyn and have them do all the tests and monitor everything so we'll know if something's wrong.
Malachi is sweet. I know he wants what is best for the baby just as much as I do. I'm very fortunate to have someone who cares and wants to make sure everything goes perfectly. Unfortunately, the idea of going to an ob-gyn sends chills down my spine. I tried to go once right before I got married because my mother made me, and I was so tense she couldn't do the exam. I was shaking and nauseous the whole time and on the ride home. I felt degraded and sick. I don't want to go through that again.
I believe that if I take care of myself, eat right, get some excersize and monitor the baby via protein tests, fetoscopes, keeping track of my weight and cervical measurements, we'll have a good idea of how the baby is developing and growing.I don't want some doctor poking around inside my body or hooking me up to machines. I don't want an ultrasound or any of that stuff.
I have a million and one reasons why I don't want a doctor's care, and just so you all know, I've researched it thouroughly and heard all of the mainstream arguments against it (So I don't need anymore!). I'm not looking for an argument or anything, but just trying to vent.
Hopefully we'll be able to come to some sort of agreement. I'm not really interested in "being flexible" or compromising on this issue for the sake of my baby and my body, but I want Malachi to feel comfortable that the baby will be taken care of. Anyhow, there it is.
Kristi

New Stuff and Other Stuff

This was originally a bulletin due to technical difficulties... Now it's the blog it should've been...
So, much has happened in the past however long it's been. I really should've blogged sooner, but I've been busy and lazy and forgetful. Let's see... I got a new car. I love it VERY much. It's a beautiful white 2005 Chevy Aveo. It makes me happy. The A/C works, both blinkers blink and it doesn't make gurgling noises at me on long trips. I'm thrilled. I'll show you CAians whenever somebody calls me or comes to visit. *tear Malachi has finally been corrupted! Muwahahahaha! He got a tattoo and his tongue pierced. I'm pleasantly surprised as I figured he'd put it off until I was old and senile. He actually decided he wanted it. We were in Vegas with Retzer et al and he just started talking about it. He wanted something pierced and blah blah blah. Erica said she'd get him a piercing as a wedding anniversary present. Haha. She while we were on the way to get that done, he then said he wanted a tattoo too. So anyhow, he'll have to post pics up for you all to see. He's very pleased with himself. Of course Retzer couldn't let me be left out, so she talked me into getting a septum piercing. I like the way it looks, but it hurt BADLY! I teared up like a little baby. Of all the things I've pierced and all the tattoos and other stupid things I've doen to myself, this was BY FAR the most painful. I don't recommend it unless you've been drinking heavily or bathing in novocaine. Yes, you heard it right-- Malachi and I have been married for a year. 7/17 was our anniversary. All I can say is the first year HAD BETTER BE the hardest. Seriously though, despite the rough roads, it's been a good year. I'm happy we've hit a milestone in our marriage. We've been together almost three years too, which is cool. So yeah, we're moving again. I HATE moving, but it has to be done. SoCal is so ridiculouly expensive... I hate it. I A part of me is wondering why we moved here anyways. I love the beaches, the events, the cheap shopping, the familiarity and my college friends but I have no idea how we'll ever be able to get ahead financially living here. We certainly won't be able to ever buy a home here. We probably won't ever have the money to even rent a decent sized apartment in this area. Even with Malachi working 40 hours a week and me working 25-30 hours a week, we're still barely scraping by. Blah. We'll be moving in with Erica and her parents. Hopefully after a few months we'll be able to get current on everything and find our own place. We really value our privacy and independence, so I know it will be interesting. I'm grateful to be able to rent a room and all the from them, but I'm hoping it will be a short-term arrangement. Hmm... What else can I say... Ah yes, I've started substitute teaching. I've only had one gig yet-- a 5th grade class. It was interesting. I like the group home so much better. I feel like I have more control. Plus, at the home we have to maintain a 4/1 ratio between kids and staff. At the school I had somewhere between 30-40 kids. It was chaos. I could never be a teacher. What a revolting and terrifying thought. Anyhow, I guess that's all I know... Ciao.

Mini Update

It seems like all I ever do now is little updates... Sorry, but we're still getting settled in. Malachi and I are looking for work. I might just start substitute teaching, or I may try to find some other regular job. I haven't actually decided yet. We'll see. Malachi is looking for work too. I don't know what he's going to get, but he's applying everywhere in the area. He doesn't really care what he gets as long as it pays! He's probably going to stay at CBU. It'll work out, but it'll be rough for a bit. The apt is nice-- better than I expected, so we're content. We're in the process of collecting furniture for the pad. We've got a dining room table, but no chairs, a couch, coffee table and chair for the living room, and a bed and one dress (we might need one more) for our room. We're short a few pieces, but we're managing. We were so happy to find that we left 75% of our dishes in AK. <- sarcasm. I've been buying things here and there, but it sucks because we don't have complete sets. We have the coffee cups and soup bowls from our Pfalstaph (sp???) set and the plates from our Arcoroc set. The end. It's pretty sad. I feel like I did in college, where none of my dishes or matched and I really didn't care. Except for now, I do care. It kinda sucks. I'm so thrilled to be down here, especially for shopping purposes. We did most of our first shopping at the 99 Cent Only store. I loooove it. We got half and half, cereal, chips, milk, bagels, bread, 6 packs of soda, and a ton of other stuff for-- you guessed it-- 99 cents each. It's awesome. Also, they sell artichokes for a buck fifty here as opposed to 3 fifty in AK. And I bought a bag of 5 avocados at the 99 Cents Only store instead of spending 2 bucks per fruit. I love it. It's so much easier to be frugal here. We're not pregnant, obviously, or I would have said something by now. We're still trying. I don't have much patience (duh) so something better happen quick like or I'll have to adopt. Malachi's friend Ron and Michele live down here and we're going to have erev shabbat with them tomorrow. Hopefully that will go well. We'll probably check out congregations this weekend. I think there are enough options in the area that we should be able to find something we like. Let's see... we went to the beach last week. It was fun but it took 4 days to get the majority of the sand out of my dreads. That sucked. Next time I'll wear a swim cap. We all had a blast. Erica and Malachi lathered up with sunblock and neither of them burned too badly. I got a bit pink, but the next day it was a fab tan. I love being half black. Muwahahaha. I had a weird dream last night that I was on a cruise and befriended Britney Spears and we wen't to the spa and got massages and mudbaths. It was weird... Not that that has anything to do with anything... We'll I have to get going for now. I'm going to do some job hunting and maybe some more unpacking. I'm planning to email you guys with my phone number and address, if you don't have it already. If you don't get an email from me (or you know I don't have your email) just send me a message and I'll send you my contact info.

Everything's Messed Up

I'm going to whine.
So, now with less than two days before we hit the road for CA, we realize that Malachi's financial aid is NOT going to cover CBU. Now we are thinking UCR would be a better bet. Great. No problem... Except for one little thing....
WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE LIVING AT CBU.
I looked at the apt. last week. It really blows, because school doesn't start until August or September, but the housing issue is going to mess everything up. I mean, can we get away with living there for a month or two and then leaving before school starts? I think not.
So now we're the same sad situation we were in at the very beginning- I have no job, crappy credit and we have nowhere to live. Grrr...
Seriously though, what would the ramifications be if we moved into CBU housing and them left before school actually started? Hmmm... I don't know. I wonder if we'd get charged a fat fee... I wonder if we'll even have to sign a lease. I can't believe I'm sitting here, with all my crap packed up, leaving in two days and I don't have a place to live. This is really not good.
K

Terrible, Horrible, No Good,Very Bad Day

Yesterday sucked.
I got a filling in one of my back molars about a year ago and ever since, it has been very sensitive to hot and cold. I usually chewed any hot or cold food on the other side of my mouth so it wouldn't piss that tooth off. And I hate going to the dentist more than pretty much anything else, so I never went back to get that filling looked at.
So anyways, this past week that tooth has been hurting a lot. It was throbbing here and there, but I figured I'd just eat room temperature foods for a few days and it would stop. It didn't. Friday night it got so bad I wanted to cry. Over the weekend the pain became reeeeeeally unbearable. I got some topical tooth numbing stuff, but I had built up an immunity to it by Sunday afternoon.
Yesterday I called my dentist and begged for an appointment. "How ironic," he must've thought as he is usually the one begging me to come in there... Anyways, he looked at the tooth (and when I say "looked" I mean poked it with a metal scrapper to make sure it was really hurting) and said "root canal." Since I'm only going to have insurance through the end of the month and because I hate extended pain, I told him to pull the the tooth. Apparently, the filling was sitting in a pile of nerves and that was pissing them off. Oh well, good riddance.
My quest for dentures has finally progressed. One down, twenty-seven more to go.
So anyhow, that was Monday. I had Malachi call my job and let them know I wouldn't be in, since I couldn't talk. I spent the rest of the day watching CSI:NY dvds and chewing with my mouth wide open.
I called into work later in the afternoon to see how things were going. Apparently, nobody bothered to call anyone to talk cases while I was out, so now I'll have some nightmare to sort out when I go in today. Plus, they want me to stay for this Bar Mtg. thing tonight to get people to take cases. That blows.
Maybe I'm crazy, but I had kind of assumed, somebody would cover for me while I was out. I mean, if anyone else is out, we all just pick up the slack and do their job. With only 6 employees, it kind of has to be done that way. But no, not for Kristin it isn't.
This is my last week at AYC. Next week I fly to CA to look for work and whatnot. I come back Friday afternoon. Then, I go in Monday, make a half-hearted stab at calling people, then I'm out! WOo hoo! I can't wait.
Goodbye.