Ignorant Historian

I know way too many people who don’t like to read. I suppose there are a lot of people that fall into that category which is why I so many. I am always trying to get them to read but as of yet have not successfully nagged someone into becoming a reader. I guess the best strategy is to highlight all the benefits…

That said, here are books I have or will try to use to entice non-readers into exercising their brain:

1. The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins

I actually know non-readers who have picked this up and enjoyed it. It’s quite palatable to people who are used to the fast-pace of most television shows and movies.

2. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

I think this is just a fun series for people of all ages but also has some depth.

3. Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris

I’d recommend this to teens and college-aged as an introduction to Christian non-fiction.

4. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

Nothing like a good mystery/puzzle.

5. The 39 Clues series

While I’m not sure what I think about Scholastic turning this into an opportunity to promote good ole American consumerism
(and deeping their wallets), but I find the stories interesting yet educational. Definitely got two little girls hooked on the audiobooks.

6. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Perhaps just because I love this world so much. But really, I think that anyone who likes science fiction movies could enjoy these books. Better than fan fiction about their favorite science fiction universe.

7. Tomorrow, When the World Began by John Marsden

For teens, but especially for teen girls who aren’t necessarily into the typical teen girl all-about-shopping-and-clothes scene.

8. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom

An easy introduction to Christian biographies. Will stick with you.

9. Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt

I think this would be an easy introduction for an adult Christian who was wanting to start reading to bolster their faith and think through the day-to-day implications.

10. The Circle Trilogy by Ted Dekker

I think these are pretty easy to get into…the fast pace helps.

Check out Broke and Bookish for more Top Ten lists

I’m having a hard time keeping up with this blog not because I don’t have anything to say (will there ever be a day when that’s true!), but because I’m only on the computer 2 hours a week or so. If it wasn’t for the fact that I frequent Twitter and Facebook on my phone multiple times a day, this would be admirable.

So here are some post ideas rattling around my head. Let me know which interest you. Perhaps it’ll motivate me to put the time into pulling them together.

Potential blog posts:

“Our” money

Getting ready for employment

Choosing food over God

Why the downfall of marriage in America might not be such a bad thing

Unemployment and depression

Why we’re losing our children

Feel free to also suggest topics you’d like me to address!

Remember that interview I asked you to pray for a couple of weeks ago?

Well, I got it. :-)

From the beginning, it just felt right. It wasn’t a job that I was looking for, but an opportunity that fell in my lap. One of my Twitter friends suggested I look at the jobs her workplace had posted, and I did. A few days later I was doing a phone interview, and within the week, I had an in-person interview as well. After another interview and some time enjoying my family, they offered me the job.

I’ll be doing customer support for a growing technology company. Perhaps I’m a bit of a nerd, but answering techy questions all day sounds wonderful. I love the atmosphere of the company, and it has been voted one of the best places to work in the Triangle as well as nationally.

I start January 23rd, so I have a few weeks to get all the little things finished up and enjoy my last days of freedom. I’m thankful for my unemployment and how it has stretched me, but I’m ready for new challenges and opportunities.

Last night baby “Bean” was born, making me an aunt! She weighed 7 lb 5 oz and is 19 inches long.

My parents and I will be going to visit her and the proud parents this afternoon…can’t wait!

So, one of the things on my 30 Before 30 list was to make an author website. Well, that’s done. You can check it out here:

RonnicaZRothe.com

Today I have an interview at 1:30…I’d love your prayers! This seems like a good fit, but I don’t want to be presumptious as to what God may be up to.

This is my 1300th post, so I thought I’d bake you up a treat:

I’ve now been unemployed for three long weeks. While I wouldn’t presume to know (yet!) what it’d be like to be long-term unemployed, I do feel like I’m getting a feel for this new phase of life.

Some things I’ve learned:

It’s still possible to run out of time even when all your times is “yours.”

It’s easier than I’d like to fall into self-centered, self-absorbed patterns.

It’s great to have the flexibility to work when I want.

I still look forward to time “off.”

Okay, I need a bit more of a break. I’ll be back later this week to share my plans for the upcoming readathon, as I’m doing something a bit different this year.

Have a great week!

This summer seems never ending, doesn’t it? Summer is my favorite season, but I think I’ve had enough. I’m ready for a change!

But apparently summer will end. We only have 4 more challenges left. Up this week:

“That you step back and (with your husband, if you are married) plan the various forms of your life’s ministry in chapters. Chapters are divided by various things—age, strength, singleness, marriage, employment choices, children at home, children in college, grandchildren, retirement, etc. No chapter has all the joys. Finite life is a series of tradeoffs. Finding God’s will, and living for the glory of Christ to the full in every chapter is what makes it a success, not whether it reads like somebody else’s chapter or whether it has in it what chapter five will have.”

This is the first one that I must say, I’m not sure I entirely agree with. Perhaps I just don’t understand his intent.

I don’t really think it matters how you view the years of your life, as long as you recognize that what God may be calling you to now, may not be what he’s calling you to forever. Sure, life has seasons, but like seasons do, they slowly change. I think rarely does life change abruptly and completely, though there are times that it does, which the term “chapters” implies to me.

So, now I’ve gotten my nitpickiness out of the way, let’s get to what perhaps he really was trying to say. I like that he encourages us women not to compare our lives with another’s. I may be able to do this or that, but just because I have the freedom to do so doesn’t mean that you will. A godly woman doesn’t come from a cookie cutter. In fact, God wants us to do different things, or he wouldn’t have gifted us differently.

At the same time, we aren’t to long for different seasons of our life, past or potential. For me, this can be a real struggle, as I find it easy to long to be a wife and a mother. Thankfully, I have friends in my life that can give me a more realistic picture of those roles than what I find in my daydreams. It’s healthy for me to get a good dose of reality!

Other Posts in This Series:

A Summer of Growth

Peace, Joy, and Strength

Daily Acts of Love

Women of the Book

Women of Prayer

Deep Thinkin’

No More Frittering

Exploiting Not Paralyzing

Keeping Me Honest

To Be God’s Free Agent

Photo by photon_de