The Bachelor Wedding: Grown Sexy or Just Plain Sex?

Last night I tuned into prime time television big time -- the Grammys and of course I had to take a sneak peak at the Bachelor wedding. I would say that last night was one of the biggest nights in popular culture in a long time, especially concerning marriage equality and sex. Of course, if you were watching the Grammys you know that Daft Punk won album of the year and record of the year for the {overplayed} summer hit, "Get Lucky." Then, Macklemore, Ryan Lewis and Mary Lambert performed "Same Love" as 33 couples were married by Queen Latifah. Then, ABC was broadcasting The Bachelor wedding of Sean Lowe and Catherine Guidici live.

All of those things spoke about our sex-driven culture. One of the most interesting things to me, though, was the Bachelor wedding. There's been magazine article after magazine article about Sean Lowe's faith and his commitment to abstain from sex until marriage. His beliefs make a statement. However, in some weird way, that statement turned mainline in the end. Our culture is not only obsessed with sex but has lost all total respect for it, in what appears to be, all instances. If you tuned in AT ALL to The Bachelor wedding a hour and half prior to the ceremony, you will know what I'm talking about. There was way less talk about the wedding and way more talk about the wedding night. ABC even {super awkwardly} had a live cam so viewers could see into the honeymoon suite. The rest of the programming contained lingerie shopping, a peek into Catherine's boudoir shoot for Sean and mention after mention about the wedding night. There were a few instances where viewers saw Catherine trying on dresses or picking out flowers; however, these moments were far overshadowed by all the wedding night talk. For two people who hadn't even had sex yet, there was A LOT of sex talk.

The one instance that really set me off though, was the very end scene; the one that played as the credits were rolling. The wedding was over and ABC cut out to the honeymoon suite (Sean and Catherine were not there yet). The lights were on and there was a sign on the door that said "honeymoon suite." Then, the lights turned low as ABC zoomed the camera out. Just when you thought it was over the camera stayed and kept a watchful eye on the honeymoon suite as the credits started to roll. Then the noises started -- some "bow-chicka-wow-wow" music, an owl hooting, a train going by. At first I thought, "Oh, whatever." But then the noises grew in number and got louder and louder as the camera kept an eye on the ever-glowing honeymoon suite. Ok, enough already. Twitter fans started catching on. These noises had a purpose, they were sending a pretty overt message. What a distasteful way to end the show! How ABC ended up taking a lack of sex and focusing completely on sex is pretty beyond me. Marriage is about sex; but it's also about 100 other things.

It's not a secret that our world has lost respect for sex. What's beginning to worry me though is that we seem to be nurturing a really raunchy disrespect towards sex. I'm just going to say it, I was not okay with the way ABC/Sean/Catherine and whoever else allowed the show to carry on. I'm not on board with all lingerie shopping, the sneak peek into the boudoir shoot scene and the excessive wedding night talk. Don't get me wrong, all of those things are great within the right contexts. I'm a married woman, for heaven's sake! I think lingerie, boudoir shoots and sex are all plenty fun. But publicized on ABC? This, my fellow blog readers, was the absolute wrong context. Catherine claimed that she wanted her wedding to be "Grown sexy," whatever that means. But, honestly, I feel like all ABC did was portray their impending sex life as one big party. I think all of this goes to show that those of us who believe in saving sex for marriage still have a responsibility, when given the chance and opportunity, to be modest because sex really is something that's sacred and it's not just some party that we desperately can't wait to participate in someday.

*I should note that the wedding ceremony itself was really, really beautiful. Sean's dad did an excellent job at explaining the purpose of marriage. I am really happy for Sean and Catherine. But this is a blog post about sex and popular culture, nonetheless.

Wrestling

Last week I took an intensive course. Asbury has a January term every year and it's a great opportunity to pick up some credit hours before school commences again in February. This January I took United Methodist Doctrine and Polity. Sounds really exciting, right? That's what I thought, too. However, it turned out to be a really great class, partly due to my professors and partly due to yes, the Doctrine and Polity that we studied. I honestly thought the class was going to be extremely dry, torturous even. However, it really was the opposite of that. The only torturous part was sitting in a chair from 8:00 - 5:00 for a week straight and staring right into my computer screen. Other than that, though, I found that (to me at least) Doctrine is really beautiful thing.
One of my assignments for the class is to answer nine questions from the United Methodist Book of Discipline about what I believe to be true. These questions will be used one day when I go before the big and scary board of ordained ministry in hopes of being ordained as a deacon in the UMC. The questions range from "What is your understanding of evil, as it exists in the world?" to "How do you plan to teach, affirm and apply United Methodist Doctrine in the area of ministry to which you have been called?" One thing that I've discovered about this assignment is that it is not easy. I don't know if I was expecting it to be so. But, you all know me. I'm a writer. Writing is my thing; it's easy for me to do; I love it. It brings joy to my heart. However, yesterday, writing my answers to these questions was not easy and it certainly was not fun. It was making me mad, actually. I was stuck in my own writer's block -- 100% stuck, woven in, tangled up in my own mind. My writing, or lack thereof came to a halt. I ended up taking a break and then went back to press through and answer the first two questions of my assignment. Then, I quit. Later that evening, I sat in bed screaming, in my head, "God, PLEASE help me write what I believe about you." I went to bed exhausted, defeated, begging and pleading with God that today might be a better writing day. Ha. Alright, that last sentence was a little dramatic. But I really did feel a bit defeated. I've written credo after credo about what I believe about God, but somehow these ordination questions became very difficult for me to articulate.
They say joy comes in the morning so this morning I woke up with a spring in my step, ready to prance five feet to my couch in order to answer more questions. I said a little prayer and then I began writing, answering question after question. Today was an easier writing day; by the grace of God I began to think I might actually believe a thing or two about the Almighty. Ha.
Really, though, how important it is to wrestle with raw thoughts about what we believe. I am thankful for yesterday because it led to me to today. That thinking and wrestling was not in vain! The further I press into this assignment, the more I realize how everyone should have to answer these questions, not on account of mere torture, but because we are transformed when we are forced to articulate what we believe. We are able to know the difference between something that's orthodox and something that's heretical. We are able to articulate exactly why Jesus had to come and die, what that even means to us today and why it should even matter. Someday (Lord willing) I will teach others the beliefs of the faith. My wrestling is not only to my benefit, but to theirs, too. What a privilege it is to wrestle because wrestling leads to articulation and articulation helps us to worship right; it helps us worship more fully and grow into who we are meant to be. Perhaps wrestling is a true and pure form of discipleship. So, today, I encourage you to wrestle and to take heart in tomorrow; because tomorrow will bring a new light, a new articulation. I take hope in this: surely we reap from wrestling.

Well, that's precisely how I felt yesterday.

Baking Sunday: Pesto, sundried tomato and garlic braided bread

After all the holidays and traveling, I was ready to do a little Baking Sunday again. The only thing missing from this Baking Sunday was Jenny! I'm looking forward to her return. Otherwise, last night was a fun adventure in the bread making and baking world. Spaghetti Carbonara was on zee menu, so I thought bread might be complementary, as it always is. And, I'm a fan of the occasional carb overload. It all worked out for me. Also, big shout-out to my dear, Kirsten Frost, who I met this summer at Project Transformation. She is taking an artisan bread baking class for her interm! She is learning to bake different kinds of bread...all for credit. Now, people, to me, that's money well spent. What I would give to have a fun class like that! A part of her class also includes blogging her baking experiences. I highly recommend that you check it out if baking is your thing. It's so fun! See it here: http://collegiatecarbohydrates.wordpress.com/

Now, onto the bread. I found this bread recipe when I was researching Nudo olive oil back in December. I fell in love with it and couldn't wait to bake it. It's a pretty normal dough recipe (very similar to my pizza dough, so the directions will be the same at first), but it splits the bread into three sections after its rise time and calls for you to work basil pesto into one section, sundried tomatoes into another and fresh, pressed garlic into another. Then you braid the pieces together to bake them. This bread is pretty heavenly, especially hot, out of the oven with a little butter and garlic salt on top. I've adapted the recipe a bit from the original, but it's near the same. If you like pesto, you're going to love this. Enjoy!

What you'll need:

- 3 1/3 cups of bread flour
- 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 packet of fast-acting yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/3 cups of warm water
- 2 tsp basil pesto
- 2 tsp sundried tomato pesto (I used Giada's; I found it at Target)
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 egg beaten, for washing

Directions:

1. In your Kitchenaid bowl, combine the bread flour, oil, yeast, salt and about a cup of the warm water.

2. Using the dough hook on your KitchenAid mixer, stir until a loose dough begins to form. Add in the remaining water as the dough begins to form. If the dough appears too dry after you add in the water, add a little bit more; if it appears too wet, sprinkle in a little bit of flour. The dough should start pulling away from the side of the bowl and begin forming into a ball after 30 seconds or so.

3.  When the dough forms into a ball, gradually increase the speed of your KitchenAid to medium. The dough ball should remain intact on the dough hook. If it's not hooking, turn your mixer off and help it hook and gradually increase the speed again. This happens to me, every so often. Otherwise let the mixer knead the dough on medium speed for 8 minutes. If you need to knead by hand, turn out the ingredients on a well-floured surface and knead for at least 10 minutes by hand.

4. While the dough is kneading, prepare a floured surface for the dough to rise on. Then, prepare a damp towel to cover the dough. I normally use a spray bottle to dampen my kitchen towel.

5. After 8 minutes, using floured hands, remove the dough from the hook and set it on the counter to rise. Use some olive oil to cover the top of the dough so it doesn't dry out while it rises. After that, cover the dough with the dampened tea towel and let the it rise for one hour.

6. When the dough is finished rising, split it into three equal boules. Work basil pesto into one section, sundried tomato pesto into the other and the minced garlic into the last. 

7. Roll each section out into a long sausage. Make sure the sections are even and then braid them together. Pinch the ends to secure them for baking.

8. Put the bread on a baking tray, give it a light egg wash and let it rise for 30 more minutes.

9. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350F. When the bread is finished rising, bake it for 30-35 minutes. The bread is finished when it's nice and golden and when it sounds hollow when tapped.

Enjoy the bread with some melty butter and garlic salt. Yum, yum!

Guys, guess what? I was more intentional about taking pictures this time! Yahoo. I hope these are helpful!

 

Normally, I use homemade pesto, but basil is almost impossible to find around here in the winter, so Mezzeta's did the trick! The original recipe calls for regular sundried tomatoes, but I found this pesto by Giada at Target and thought it would be more delicious. Also, pesto freezes really well, so if you don't have immediate plans for it, freeze it.

The rising dough in action.

Working in some pesto. My hands smelled like pesto all day today, by the way.

Rolling!

My sections after being rolled out.

The braiding process, the best part, in my opinion. It's not errday you get to braid bread.

My darling rising some more.

The finished product. Artsy pic, ta-da! *If I would have dropped that I would have eaten it off the floor. It's that delish.*

The Time Proved Rich

Since going to seminary, Kyle and I look forward, very much, to Christmas. We enjoy Christmas like everyone else, for all the common reasons, but since moving, we especially enjoy it now because we know it's a time (and sometimes the only time during the year) when we are going to get to see our family members and friends. This year, we really hit the nail on the head. We saw just about everyone we could see in Kansas. And for that, we're grateful (and I'm proud!).

For some reason, though, this Christmas, when we were bouncing around from one place to the next, every time we had to leave, I felt a sudden, quick wave of extreme sadness. And as soon as it swept over me, it was gone. Then, that sadness was replaced by a deep sense of satisfaction. That satisfaction brought me great joy in the end.

Now, let me explain all of that, because the more that I've reflected over all of it, the more I've been extremely grateful to God for all of the blessings he's put in our lives.While I was sad to leave so many of our family members, I'm glad that I experienced that sadness. It made me realize how blessed we are. I've realized that good, deep, kind relationships leave us with a deep and rich sense of satisfaction even when we do have to go. Our time with our family was good. And even when we had to leave, we left feeling even more grateful, even more satisfied with time that we were given together. The time proved rich.

Living so far away has helped me to experience hospitality to the fullest. When we leave one place, we're always welcomed, with open arms at another. This is a blessing in life, and I realize that many others do not have this same blessing. Perhaps these are the types of relationships that God longs for us to have with others, especially our families -- deep, appreciative relationships where we value, in a rich way, time, conversation, and laughter. Where we welcome one another with open arms, at all times, and value, deeply, the time that we have together.

It was a Merry Christmas for us indeed! 

The Komlofske Sibling Clan

The Just Crew

How-to Host: A Cheese Party

When I was little, I remember having themed birthday parties -- think Disney Princesses, Little House on the Prairie and countless middle school slumber parties. As I've grown older, I've missed the excitement of a themed birthday party. Thankfully our seminary friends are really good at having themed parties. Last year we celebrated our friend, Lauren, with a "favorite things" surprise birthday party. All of her favorite foods were there. Our other friend, Quentin, had a beard birthday party. So, when it was my turn, I thought about a theme for me. One of my favorite things in the world is cheese. I told Kyle that I would love to have a cheese party for my birthday, so we did just that. It was such a hit. Do yourself a favor, have a cheese party sometime with your friends (birthday or not). It's just too much fun! Here's the scoop and a little "how-to host."

Having a cheese party can be expensive to host if you're planning on providing all the cheese. So, we asked each couple/family to bring their favorite block of cheese along to share. With a little bit of communication, the result was beautiful. We ended up with Sharp Wisconsin White Cheddar, Extra Sharp New York White Cheddar, Sharp Cheddar, Brie, Gouda, and a Cheeseball. And my wonderful co-worker, Sarah, made me a beautiful strawberry cake to share with our guests!

As hosts, we provided crackers, baguettes, jam, marinated olives and sparkling cranberry lemonade. The following are my best recommendations and recipes!

- Trader Joe's Cracker Assortment (the peppered crackers are my absolute favorite!)
- Kroger Country Club Wheat Crackers
- Wheat Thins Tuscan and Herb 
- Panera Bread Baguettes. The Seminary receives free bread every Monday, so I picked up four baguettes for the party and we really could have used more (to serve 16).
- Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves. Listen to me people, this stuff is straight from France. There's no messing around with Jam anymore. Bonne Maman is the real deal and you can even find it at Kroger!

 Marinated Olives Recipe

What you'll need: 
- 1 13 oz. jar of Kalamata Olives (pitted) or any olives that you'd prefer
- 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled, smashed and minced
- 2 sprigs of fresh thyme (leaves removed from stem and chopped; discard stems)
- 1 sprig of fresh rosemary (leaves removed from stem and chopped; discard stem)
- 1/2 teaspoon of grated lemon peel
- 1 tablespoon of freshly grated Parmesan

Directions: 
1. Drain olives, then chop all olives and move to a separate bowl.
2. In a medium skillet, over medium-low heat, warm olive oil, garlic, herbs and lemon peel until fragrant (2-3 minutes).
3. Add olives into the skillet; toss until they're well coated and warmed through
4. Remove olives from skillet to a bowl and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, or until ready to serve.
5. Prior to serving, add Parmesan to the olive mixture and toss well.
6. Serve marinated olives with small toasts

Cranberry Lemonade

I don't have particular measurements for this. I just used a half/half mixture of lemonade and Cranberry Sierra Mist. I added cranberries and sliced lemons to garnish. Waaa la!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is that. The party was SO much fun. It was definitely one of my favorite birthdays. Wonderful company, golden baguettes, jam, cheese, friends, homemade birthday cards and flowers -- it was all so perfect. I'm so grateful for such a wonderful season at seminary and some really classy friends!

The spread.

Panera Baguettes. Delicious!

Extra Sharp New York White Cheddar Cheese! Sharp cheese is my love language.

Marinated olives and toasts.

Bonne Maman Jam in action.

Birthday flowers from beautiful friends.

The Sparkling Cranberry Lemonade was a real hit.

Sarah's delectable strawberry cake with cream cheese frosting.

My lady friends (and Sheppy, too!).