Sunshine blogger award, part two

The Sunshine Blogger Award is given to “bloggers who are positive and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere”. Or so I’m told. The awesome, amazing, astounding, and always adorable “Authentically Aurora” nominated me for this award a few days ago, and I am pleased to accept. Thank you, Aurora, from the bottom of my heart.

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you
2. Answer the questions from the person who has nominated you
3. Nominate 11 other bloggers for this award
4. Write the same number of questions for the bloggers you have nominated
5. Notify the bloggers you nominated

On Sunday I accepted the award, thanked Aurora (as I have just done again), and answered her eleven questions. Today I am going to nominate eight bloggers. I wanted to recognize other bloggers than those I recently nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award, although each of them is worthy of the Sunshine Blogger Award as well.

Here are my nominees:

https://depressionistheenemy.com/ who has many thoughtful posts on a number of topics (including mental health issues, as the name suggests);

Tricia at https://freedomthroughempowerment.wordpress.com/ who also has great insight into life;

SLIMJIM at https://veritasdomain.wordpress.com/ whose posts on the Bible and Christian living are both readable and helpful;

Mary O Green at https://threemeangreens.com/ who hasn’t posted in a few months—I hope she will start again soon!;

Sweet aroma at https://onetahayes.com/ who is recovering from a bad fall (literally and figuratively) and I hope she gets better quickly;

A Christian Worldview of Fiction at https://rebeccaluellamiller.wordpress.com/ which includes far more than you might expect from the title;

Citizen Tom at https://citizentom.com/ whose political insights are always valuable;

and Makayla at https://scrubsandstuff.wordpress.com/ who posts a reading each day from “The Message,” a broad paraphrase of the Bible. I don’t recommend such paraphrases for serious Bible study, but it is fascinating to see a new spin on familiar verses. I recommend this blog to all of you.

And here are eight questions for each of you (although I would welcome answers to these questions from any other readers as well):

Why did you decide to create your blog?

What kind of reader are you imagining as you write a post?

Which of your posts is your favorite?

For what are you most thankful?

What is your favorite memory from childhood?

If you could enroll in exactly one class for the next year, what would you choose to study?

If you won or inherited millions of dollars, what is the first thing you would buy?

What do you hope you will be doing ten years from today?

I am looking forward to reading your answers. J.

 

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Sunshine Blogger Award

The Sunshine Blogger Award is given to “bloggers who are positive and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere”. Or so I’m told. The awesome, amazing, astounding, and always adorable “Authentically Aurora” nominated me for this award a few days ago, and I am pleased to accept. Thank you, Aurora, from the bottom of my heart.

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you
2. Answer the questions from the person who has nominated you
3. Nominate 11 other bloggers for this award
4. Write the same number of questions for the bloggers you have nominated
5. Notify the bloggers you nominated

 

Having already thanked AA, I will now comply with rule number two. The final three steps will have to wait until the end of the week, but I am working on it, I promise.

And, by the way, this happens to be post number 300 on Salvageable.

What is your biggest dream?

My biggest dream is to be a successful writer. By successful, I do not mean rich and famous. I want the things I write to be meaningful and helpful to readers. I would like to believe that at least one thing I have written will have enduring value—that it will be meaningful and helpful even after I have long shuffled off this mortal coil.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

My first inclination is to say that I would like to return to my childhood home. Readers of last week’s posts will know that such a visit is no longer possible. I have no burning desire to visit any one place, but I would like some day to see the major sites of Europe, west Asia, and Egypt. On the other hand, China and Japan also interest me. And India….

Do you consider yourself an introvert or an extrovert?

Undoubtedly an introvert. On a scale of one to ten, where one is totally introverted, ten is totally extraverted, and five is purely ambiverted, I would probably score a two. Maybe one and three quarters.

Is what you’re doing now what you always wanted to do growing up?

“Always” is a big word. As a boy, I dreamed of being an astronaut, a preacher, a police officer, a professional baseball player, and an author. As I grew older, author became the main dream. Then I realized that, whatever I did, I wanted to do for Christ and the Church. I received a proper education and began full-time work in the church. After two moves, I realized that what I was doing was not what I really wanted to do. Mid-life crisis? Near nervous breakdown? I’m not entirely sure. I found a different full-time job in the secular world, one that sometimes involves writing but is not focused on writing. I also have two part-time jobs, which keeps me busy. Having the opportunity to write, to teach, and to share the Word of God, I think I am doing what I was meant to do, and that’s good enough for me.

Do you usually follow your heart or your head?

My head. I am Mr. Spock in human flesh. Even my career change, mentioned above, was carefully calculated, not an impulse or a whim.

What are you most thankful for? 

I am most thankful for redemption through Jesus Christ. Without his saving work, nothing I have and nothing I do would have any value.

What’s on your bucket list this year?

I am not a bucket-list kind of person. I tend to live more I the moment, one day at a time. That said, I will have the chance next summer to see something I have always wanted to see—a total eclipse of the sun. Missing that would be an enormous disappointment, so I hope the sky is clear that day.

What’s your favorite food ever?

That depends upon a great many things. At this moment, I am going to say a traditional German dinner of sauerbraten and several sides. The best German food I’ve ever eaten was in the Amana Colonies in Iowa, not far from Iowa City. Over the years, I have learned how to make a respectable sauerbraten in my slow-cooker. In fact, I made some last Sunday.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?

When I was preparing to go to college, heading towards a career in the Church, my father said, “J., don’t go to a Christian college. Go to a school where you will learn about the world and about how people think in the world outside the Church.” I took his advice. In religion classes I learned about the historical-critical method of studying the Bible, and in other classes I was exposed to a wide variety of thoughts and attitudes. I also learned how to defend the Christian faith in a hostile environment. As a result, when I began graduate school, I knew what the professors were talking about when they warned us against those things. And I have known how to discuss these things with more light and less heat than happens among many Christian apologists.

Which of the places you’ve traveled to inspired you the most, and why?

When I was in high school, my grandparents gave money at Christmas to my parents so the three of us could have a nice vacation in the summer. We went twice to the Grand Tetons near Yellowstone National Park and twice to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, staying on guest ranches each vacation. Being up in those mountains was truly inspiring, and I have enduring memories of those trips.

 

My job is not complete until I have nominated other bloggers for this award, but I am done writing for today. More will come later in the week. J.

The Versatile Blogger Award

Last month depressionistheenemy was very kind to nominate me for the Versatile Blogger award. I am grateful for this nomination, and I thank him for it. That is one of the four rules for accepting this blog, but my thanks are sincere. The other rules require that I share the award on my blog, share seven random facts about myself, and tag ten bloggers with fewer than 1000 followers and let them know they have been nominated.

Seven random facts about myself:

1. I consider myself a “cat person” and share my house with pet cats. However, I also get along with most of the dogs I know. When I was growing up, my family always had one cat and one dog as pets.
2. In my opinion, chocolate is an essential nutrient and should be consumed daily. After all, chocolate rests at the top of the food pyramid, and we always put the most important things on top, don’t we?
3. I was recently interviewed as part of a project for National History Day. Two junior high students are learning about Saladin, and part of the History Day requirements is that they interview an expert about their topic. They chose me because one of them has an older sister who has taken history classes from me in college. It’s flattering to be considered an expert, and it’s great that I had a few days to read up on Saladin before the interview.
4. I am right-handed, but I do certain tasks with my left hand, such as operate the mouse on my computer. I do this because of a pinched nerve on the right side of my neck that causes occasional pain along my right arm. I have had physical therapy for this condition, and still need to practice stretching exercises to reduce the pain (although some days I forget to stretch).
5. I think of politics as a spectator sport, although three years ago I was considering a campaign for the United States House of Representatives. Among the politicians I have met and shared conversations are my current United States Senator, my former United States Senator while he was still in office, my current United States Representative, my former United States Representative while he was still in office, a former Governor of my state while he was still in office, my current state Senator, my current state Representative, and the mayor of the largest city in my state. I also have spoken with a former President of the United States (and there is a photograph of our conversation.)
6. I have a strong behavioral addiction to Sudoku and play it online, sometimes several times in a day.
7. As a child, I took piano lessons and can still play the piano. In junior high and high school I played trombone in the school band and orchestra. Also in high school, I taught myself to play the guitar—acoustic guitar, rhythm (strumming the chords). I have written a few songs over the years.

Ten blogs that I want to nominate for this award:

This was hard for me to decide, but I am leaving off those blogs whose authors do not accept such awards, such as Wally Fry, dawnlizjones, and insanitybytes.

With that in mind, I nominate:

1. “What Katie did next” at https://katiereablog.wordpress.com/
2. “Maria, a gentle Iconoclast” at https://pilgrimsprogressrevisted.wordpress.com/
3. “Messages from the Mythical” at https://madelynlang469.com/
4. “The Dictionary Dutch Girl” at https://dictionarydutch.wordpress.com/
5. “Elihu” at https://elihuscorner.com/
6. “pearlgirl” at https://infjramblings.wordpress.com/
7. “Ally” at https://mylittlepieceofquiet.wordpress.com/
8. “Authentically Aurora” at https://authenticallyaurora.wordpress.com/
9. “kaleidoscope49” at https://kaleidoscope49.wordpress.com/
10. “Clara’s Coffee Break” at https://clarascoffeebreak.wordpress.com/

I admire all of you for your writing ability and for your perspectives on life. I wanted to say a few things about each of your blogs, but this post was getting too long already. J.

 

Starlight Blogger Award

The always amazing and adorable Authentically Aurora was kind enough to nominate me for the Starlight Blogger Award. This award is created to “celebrate the creative bloggers who have truly inspired others through their beautiful and original content, imagery, art, abilities, and wonderful personalities.” As I told her at the time, I am honored and humbled, and I’m sorry that it has taken me this long to acknowledge her acknowledgement and pass it on.

There are three rules attached to this award. The recipient (if he, she, or they choose to accept) should thank the nominator, answer three questions from the nominator, and then nominate six more blogs for the award. So, first things first—thank you very much, AA. I enjoy following your adventures and look forward to many tidings of great joy for you in this season and in the coming new year.

Second, I would like to nominate following blogs for the Starlight Blogger Award. They are listed in alphabetical order:

Elihu’s Corner

Kaleidescope49   (I’m glad you’re back from your long vacation.)

INFJ Ramblings by Pearlgirl

Playfully Tacky

See, there’s this thing called biology… by InsanityBytes.

Wally Fry  ‘s Truth in Palmyra.

If you choose to accept this award—and you are under no obligation to do so—I would be curious to know your answers to the following questions.

1. What is your favorite part of the holiday season? (Yes, I stole that from Authentically Aurora.)
2. Of all the posts you have written, which one do you consider the best? (You may define “best” any way you wish: most meaningful, most humorous, most popular, etc.)
3. What is one book you hope to read (or reread) in the next month or two, and why?

And now I must answer Aurora’s questions.

What is your favorite holiday tradition, and why? Many holiday traditions are special to me, but the one tradition that has meant the most to me in recent years is visiting the Lord’s house on Christmas Day. After all the effort to produce and enjoy a great Christmas Eve service or two, the Christmas Day service seems calmer, more peaceful, and therefore more significant. A lot of churches have no Christmas Day service—some even cancel the regular services when Christmas Day lands on a Sunday. I don’t understand. Where better to celebrate the birth of our Lord than in his own house. I’m blessed with a preacher who not only keeps Christ in Christmas but who also keeps the Mass in Christmas. I visit the house of Jesus, and he is the Host who serves me and blesses me. That is so like him!

What is the most difficult topic you write about, and why? Of my half-dozen categories, none is harder than the “therapy” category. As I address my struggles with anxiety and depression—things I have spent a lifetime trying to ignore—I don’t always feel that I am finding the right words to express what I have experienced. For this reason, several posts I have written in that category still have not been posted.

What is the reason you write? It might be that I like to read, but a bigger reason is that I have bad penmanship. I was getting Fs in penmanship in the third grade. To improve my grade, my parents had me sit at the table and write for a certain number of minutes each day. At first they had me copying paragraphs from my favorite books, but after I while I asked if I could write my own ideas instead of copying. They agreed, and I have been writing ever since.

Thank you again for the kind nomination, AA! J.

Post number one hundred

According to WordPress this is my one hundredth Salvageable post. I have been enjoying, and will continue to enjoy, the people I am meeting in the blog community. A big thank you to all of you who take the time to read my Salvageable work.

This may be true for most of you, or maybe I am unique: I find that my favorite posts of the first 100 are some of the earliest posts. These are favorites because I had been thinking about them for months, if not years, before they finally got published here. That is especially true of A Day for Mary which I would like to submit to a Christian magazine or two for publication. Likewise, Why Does He Do It?  represents a long time of watching and wondering. Knowing this about my blog, I plan to visit some of your archives to read your earliest posts, so I will know what was on your minds the most when you started blogging.

A recent discussion on the always incisive and erudite InsanityBytes makes me want to revisit the post I wrote, My Best Friend’s Rotten Wife. One of the comments I made to InsanityBytes is that “organized religion” is an oxymoron like jumbo shrimp or highway safety.

This summer I was flattered to receive two nominations for this blog. The first was from the lovely Authentically Aurora, who nominated me for the Helping Hand Award back in July. That award pleased me because accepting it didn’t require much effort on my part. Thank you, Aurora, for your kind words last summer. Then in August the gentle and sensitive Ally nominated me for the Blogger Recognition award. This one does come with rules, and here they are:

“Post an image of the award.” Done. (See the bottom of the post.)

“Thank your nominator.” Thank you, Ally, for the nomination and for all the great writing you produce.

“Nominate fifteen blogs.” This I cannot do because most of my favorite blogs have already been nominated by someone else (namely, Ally).

“Write a brief description of your blog.” Salvageable is a place where I get to be a curmudgeon one day, complaining about my neighbors or about bad drivers, and then I get to be a fan the next day, celebrating the Beatles or the Chicago Cubs. At times I write about the Christian faith, and at times I write about anxiety and depression, and at times I just ramble.

“Write one or two pieces of advice for a new blogger.” Since I broke the fifteen nominations rule, I will stretch this rule and share what I told future writers in a program called Authors in the Schools. I think these three pieces of advice are as true for bloggers as for other kinds of writers. First, to be a good writer, read a lot. Your writing will improve as you see other good writing. Second, write a lot. Write something every day if you can, even if no one else ever sees most of it. Practice doesn’t make perfect, but it generally makes better. Third, rewrite a lot. Only God can produce a flawless first draft. The rest of us need to return to work we have written and consider how it can be improved.

“Provide a link to the original BRA award.” Here it is.

Finally, what does the future hold for Salvageable? What will appear in the next 100 posts? I will continue to be both a curmudgeon and a fan. I will continue posting First Friday Fiction for at least a few more months. The Grammar Dalek will be back soon. And I may share parts of my next writing project, currently in the outline stage, which will be called Christ in Genesis.

Thank you all for reading and for your comments. J.