restaurants

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Dinner Out Is Getting More And More Complicated

Going out for dinner is more complicated these days, but it’s always complicated for my wife and I.

dinner out is getting more and more complicated

With COVID, some restaurants have decided to keep their doors shut. Some only have take out or patio service available … which was okay until now when the temperatures have started to drop in the evenings. Having dinner on a patio might be rather chilly. 

Some restaurants have a limited menu so you might go there with a hankering and end up being disappointed because the chef wasn’t feel’n your favourite dish.

I even read somewhere that those who eat in restaurants have a higher risk of contracting COVID. I have no idea if that is true or not, but I heard it. 

So these days there’s lots to consider when going out for dinner. You have to weigh all the options … or lack thereof. 

You might think it would be nice to eat out, and even get kind of psyched to go out. But by the time you have looked at where you can go and what is available, you are almost ready to break out the peanut butter and jelly and call Yogi over.

I haven’t even mentioned that at most restaurants seating is a little more limited. Even if you could make a decision, you might not be able to get in or the wait time might be prohibitive.

If right about now you are thinking, “You’re right, Paul; it is a lot of effort to go out for dinner,” well, let me tell you, that is nothing. 

On top of all these barriers to going out for dinner during this current season, my wife and I have a whole other series of complications we need to hurdle over to get that meal out at a restaurant.

You see, Lily is allergic to seafood and fish. And I’m not just talking about getting a runny nose and sneezing from eating it. All that would do is alarm people, thinking she had COVID. 

No, Lily’s allergic reaction is anaphylactic … I know, you got hypnotized trying to sound that word out, didn’t you?

The bottom line with her allergy is that her throat closes up and she can’t breathe. She does always carry an epipen with epinephrine with her to counteract an allergic reaction, but it is an injection so it’s not something you are going to take just in case. … If she ever had to use it, we could add an extra hundred dollars to the food bill, so the food would have to be worth it. 

With this fish allergy, she has to be careful of cross contamination. She can’t have the fries if they cook fish in the same oil. It also seems that more and more restaurants serve a fair bit of fish, and they cook it using the same grills, pans or fryers.

So going out for dinner, for most of you at this time, is a breeze compared to what we have to contend with. 

Oh wait … I think we found a restaurant we can go to tonight.

Here’s the thing: You will make all kinds of considerations for someone you love to find a way to do something you really want to do. Because of what Christ did for you on the cross, you should know how much God loves you. So when God shows us something He wants us to do or stop doing, we should do all we can to make it happen. We should be willing to make the adjustments because we love Him.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What recent adjustment did you make for someone? Leave your comments and questions below.

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Mmm … That Smells So Good!

Today’s entry is a guest blog from my wife, Lily.  She does all the editing for my blogs and  awhile ago she was inspired to write one of her own.

I just love the smell of coffee!  There’s nothing quite like it.  It’s one of those aromas that’s comforting.  A house always seems cozier when you smell coffee brewing.  For some, when you wake up in the morning and smell the coffee, somehow you feel more awake, and everything seems like it’s going to be ok.  Or when you come in from a bitter February winter storm and smell coffee, you immediately start to relax and warm up … even before you get your first sip!

In fact, I like the smell of coffee so much that when I saw some coffee decorating ideas on Pinterest, I just had to try them.  I now have coffee beans in some of my candleholders, constantly emitting that delicious subtle aroma of coffee in our living room.

The other day I went to Tim’s to meet a friend.  We get together occasionally to chat and catch up on each other’s lives.  We choose to meet at Tim’s not because we’re both coffee addicts, but because it’s close and convenient for both of us.  As a matter of fact, my friend usually orders a tea, and, although I like coffee, I could honestly take or leave it.  Actually, this particular time, because I walked there, I was way too hot to drink coffee.  I ordered a water.

We enjoyed a great visit and then headed home.  As soon as I got in the door, I went to my office to check phone messages and email.  As I sat at my desk, I was suddenly aware of a wonderful aroma.  I started sniffing around … I smelled coffee!  How strange since I hadn’t made coffee in the house for a few days, and there were certainly no coffee bean filled candleholders on my desk.  I kept sniffing around perplexed.

And then it dawned on me.  The aroma of coffee was coming from me!  My clothes, my hair, and even my skin smelled like coffee.  After sitting in Tim Horton’s for almost two hours, I had obviously absorbed that coffee aroma.

That got me thinking.  Do I spend enough time with Jesus that His aroma is left on me?  Can my friends get a whiff of Jesus when they’re around me? … or do they just smell me?  Lately I have to wonder.  It’s so easy to get caught up in the daily grind, in the stress of doing life that I, too often, cut short my time with God … or crowd it out all together.  And then what’s left? – just me … just me and my busyness, or impatience, or agenda, or preoccupation with various people or things.  If I haven’t been in Jesus’ presence, how can His aroma, His fragrance, His character be transferred to me?

Just like grabbing a coffee via the drive through won’t leave the aroma of coffee on me, I’ve got to stop trying to pick up Jesus by a quick drive through.  If I want to be like Him, have His fragrance on me, then I have to park myself and spend some time with Him … maybe over a coffee!

Take care and smell good!

Lily