A morning in the Strip District :)

I always love to see the look on out-of-town friends when I tell them that we shop in the Strip District :D  But no matter what its name implies, Pittsburgh's Strip District is one of my favorite places to be.  Today was an absolutely gorgeous summer day, and the streets are always jammed on Saturday mornings, so we decided to head down and 'explore' :)  As always, the stores were so much fun to walk around in, the smell of gyros, fresh lemonade, and baklava filled the air, and through it all, my camera shutter clicked non-stop :D  So with that, enjoy this incredibly long post about the best place in town (well, the best place besides CONSOL :P)

(this mural was just completed)

In the summertime, there is a great farmer's market set up in a parking lot - you can find anything from meat to lettuce!

So this new candy shop just opened, and it was such a neat place!!  As you can see, I had a little too much fun with the chocolate lips ;D

Speaking of new places, we discovered a little gem of a fabric shop.  Even though I am anything but a seamstress, this place was almost enough to make me want to get out a sewing machine!  The fabric was absolutely gorgeous, and I know where to go next time I need a Jane Austen dress :)

Yes - I always have to practice mirror pictures :D

This man was just standing on the street corner playing this instrument - he sounded wonderful!!

My dad tried, but for whatever reason it just didn't sound the same ;)

I accompanied him:

Next stop: the Mexican market.  This awesome place always smells like fresh salsa and warm tortillas :D  My stomach is growling just thinking about it....

But although the store smells amazing, I could never quite bring myself to try these (even though they are cheddar flavored!):

Or these:

Moving on.....to the best doughnuts in town :)

*cough* why on earth would I ever want a picture of this shirt? *cough*

Speaking of the best team ever:

(yay for awkward self-portraits :D)

Whatever this was, it smelled amazing!

Near the end of the main street, there is a huge fishmarket that I haven't been in for years.  We had time today, though, so we stopped in for a bit, and I'm so glad we did! (WARNING: this next sequence of photos is not for the squeamish, so I don't recommend that you eat while reading this :D)

These guys were awesome - we stood and watched them clean the fish for a long time, and they all posed for their picture :D

This guy took the fish first, and scraped off all the scales:

Then it was passed to the next man who sliced it open:

And then the fish moved right along to be gutted:

The last guy was in charge of slicing the larger fish into fillets:

I love cool signs :D

Outside the store, there were tables upon tables of the most amazing-looking cookies....

It's amazing how many people smile at you when you're holding a camera!!

This place supposedly has one of the best breakfasts in town - I'd love to try it sometime!

And we just couldn't pass our favorite place without partaking ;)

We stopped in at a little general store, and my mom was thrilled to find her favorite childhood candy!

My dad and I were more interested in these:

I knew that I had Viking roots somewhere in my bloodline!

All in all, it was such a fun morning :D  Summer is HERE!!!!  I'm lovin' every moment....

Bex <3

Am I standing by the door?

This past Sunday, our pastor gave an excellent message on how Jesus Christ is the good Shepherd, and the door for His flock, and at the end of the sermon, he read the poem 'I Stand by the Door' by Samuel Shoemaker.  It made me wonder.....am I standing by the door?  When others see me, do they see Jesus shining in every single thing I do, every word I say?  

I Stand by the Door

        ~ Samuel Shoemaker 

"I stand by the door.
I neither go too far in, nor stay too far out.
The door is the most important door in the world -
It is the door through which men walk when they find God.
There is no use my going way inside and staying there,
When so many are still outside and they, as much as I,
Crave to know where the door is.
And all that so many ever find
Is only the wall where the door ought to be.
They creep along the wall like blind men,
With outstretched, groping hands,
Feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door,
Yet they never find it.
So I stand by the door.

The most tremendous thing in the world
Is for men to find that door - the door to God.
The most important thing that any man can do
Is to take hold of one of those blind, groping hands
And put it on the latch - the latch that only clicks
And opens to the man's own touch.

Men die outside the door, as starving beggars die
On cold nights in cruel cities in the dead of winter.
Die for want of what is within their grasp.
They live on the other side of it - live because they have not found it.

Nothing else matters compared to helping them find it,
And open it, and walk in, and find Him.
So I stand by the door.

Go in great saints; go all the way in -
Go way down into the cavernous cellars,
And way up into the spacious attics.
It is a vast, roomy house, this house where God is.
Go into the deepest of hidden casements,
Of withdrawal, of silence, of sainthood.
Some must inhabit those inner rooms
And know the depths and heights of God,
And call outside to the rest of us how wonderful it is.
Sometimes I take a deeper look in.
Sometimes venture in a little farther,
But my place seems closer to the opening.
So I stand by the door.

There is another reason why I stand there.
Some people get part way in and become afraid
Lest God and the zeal of His house devour them;
For God is so very great and asks all of us.
And these people feel a cosmic claustrophobia
And want to get out. 'Let me out!' they cry.
And the people way inside only terrify them more.
Somebody must be by the door to tell them that they are spoiled.
For the old life, they have seen too much:
One taste of God and nothing but God will do any more.
Somebody must be watching for the frightened
Who seek to sneak out just where they came in,
To tell them how much better it is inside.
The people too far in do not see how near these are
To leaving - preoccupied with the wonder of it all.
Somebody must watch for those who have entered the door
But would like to run away. So for them too,
I stand by the door.

I admire the people who go way in.
But I wish they would not forget how it was
Before they got in. Then they would be able to help
The people who have not yet even found the door.
Or the people who want to run away again from God.
You can go in too deeply and stay in too long
And forget the people outside the door.
As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place,
Near enough to God to hear Him and know He is there,
But not so far from men as not to hear them,
And remember they are there too.

Where? Outside the door -
Thousands of them. Millions of them.
But - more important for me -
One of them, two of them, ten of them.
Whose hands I am intended to put on the latch.
So I shall stand by the door and wait
For those who seek it.

I had rather be a door-keeper
So I stand by the door."

Bex <3

Tis the season....

....for the best. fruit. ever. :)

Hope that you all are having a blessed week!!  It's been cool and rainy all day, so I think it's the perfect night to curl up with a good book :)

Bex <3