Food Allergies

So you might have noticed I haven't blogged for awhile. Yeah, I know. You thought I liked to write, too.
But the truth is that sometimes I don't. That is, sometimes I feel I haven't got anything to say, and sometimes I think nobody's listening anyway. And sometimes I think if I write it down, then I'll have less to talk about when I have chances to talk to people, and since I'm not very talkative, having things to talk about is always nice.

But lately, I've mostly been tired. I mean, I play my point and click games, but putting fingers to the keyboard to write something meaningful has felt like too much. Especially with this laptop with a broken hinge that I can't put on my lap very easily, making my fingers have to stretch a bit more.

So why have I been tired, and have I really been that tired? Well, yes, I have. But the good news is that I think I'm figuring out why and things should look up soon. See, I think I'm figuring out that I'm allergic to yeast. And when a person is allergic to yeast and they eat things with yeast or refined sugar in them, then one of the symptoms is that they get very tired. And since just about everything worth tasting has refined sugar in it, so it seems, I've been pretty lethargic. But then, cutting out those things can be tiring too, because what's left? Fruits and vegetables, which aren't really as filling as I'd like, especially when you can't put things on them that have refined sugar in them, and so I'm hungry and tired.

Actually, I'm exaggerating a little bit. I have found some other things I can eat, but I've also not completely cut out some things as I should because I have a limited budget and would like to eat what I have. There's also the experimentation with different things in narrowing it down to what I am allergic to and what yeast is really in--which turns out to be more than you'd think, like cheese, soy sauce, tomato sauce, peanuts, mushrooms. And I actually think there are more things than just yeast that I might be allergic to, but I'm not sure exactly what they are yet. I do get to see an allergist this week, though, so I should have a better idea pretty soon.

And I had a priesthood blessing today which helped to lift my spirits more. Actually, I should point out that with my many prayers, my spirits have been doing better gradually. But the blessing was great. There was a case of interesting timing involved in this too, because I was asked to sub in the primary and that in itself was an answer to prayers because though I hate to admit it publicly (but here I go anyway:), I'm a little burnt out on R.S. and Sunday School at the moment. I'm sure it will pass. But I really do love children and miss being around them.

So anyway, the lesson I was to teach today happened to be about healing the sick. I got the link to it last night, and since earlier in the day or maybe the day before, I'd been contemplating sickness and Jesus's point of view on them, it made me a little choked up to open the lesson to see that's what I was to teach. It seemed to be a confirmation of what I'd been thinking. I needed a blessing. I felt some minor reservation because I'd just had a father's blessing when I was at home at Easter, but it wasn't a healing blessing, and because of not only the fatigue but other symptoms as well, it seemed like that was what I needed, and it did feel wonderful and give me some needed encouragement. I mean, hey--I'm writing now, putting fingers to this awkward keyboard, so that's something already!

Substitute Teaching

I haven't written much in awhile, and I do kind of miss it. It's not that I've been too busy. It never is, of course, though I can always hope. :) But I have the past couple weeks had a job that has kept me off the computers, and I'm actually quite grateful about that. It's a little rough to be on my feet as much as I am, but I'm pretty grateful for the opportunity to be subbing again, now in the Prince George's County Public schools. I say again because I did it about 10 years ago in Alpine School District, which is the northern half of Utah Valley, Utah--from Orem to Alpine.

I have to confess I expected some differences in this area, and I've met up with a little bit of that, but there are definitely similarities. Kids are cute and have a lot of the same antics from one side of the country to the next, though it seems they start a little younger with some of the antics over here. There are students who are really bright, really eager for approval, really eager for attention, really eager for doing the right thing, and those who don't care quite as much everywhere you go.

Aside from the stresses of handling different classrooms of kids every day and spending the first half of the day trying to get everyone's name down and the second half writing those names on a a paper or the blackboard for later discipline from their teacher, it's also a little stressful not to know from day to day if I have a job, as well as to know that this is only until the end of the school year, therefore for about three more weeks. But the Lord has provided me with work as I've needed it, well, for the most part. I've had times when I could have used a little more income, but I've learned important lessons from those times as well. In any case, I'm sure things will work out.