I Heart Banana Copenhagen

Show me the MONEY.

2011-08-05T12:18:00.000-04:00

I know it has been a while since I have posted, but I decided to break the silence with something that has been on my mind lately. I have been struggling with this whole concept of a budget and spending money wisely. I recently went through a job change, which is very stressful, cue the stress spending. You almost don't realize you are doing it until afterwards, when you are looking at your bank account dwindle. I have always prided myself on having a nice cushion or as Dave Ramsey would say "Emergency Fund". The cushion took a hit...a big hit. So now I am freaking out, because as most of you know, women love security. Emergency fund=security.

Here is the crazy part. If the timing of the old/new job would have shifted a few days, I would have had the potential to make extra money in the midst of my job shift. But...timing didn't shift...and I didn't make extra money, so now I am stuck wondering why. I think this is a teachable moment for God (you know how parents always talk about teachable moments with their children). He was going to use this to teach me something about wise money management, something about WHAT I spend my money on, something about HOW I spend my money.

Then I saw this:

Dang it...........So I am now on a mission to be an excellent manager of my God's money.

Matthew 6:24
"No one can serve two masters. Either he'll love the one and hate the other, or he'll despise the one and be devoted to the other. No one can serve both God and money."

When Christy and Jennie Disagree

2011-05-25T09:39:00.000-04:00

An excerpt from a real conversation between Christy and Jennie:

Setting: the mall, watching a video on a screen.

Christy: That looks like Justin Bieber with shorter hair.
Jennie: Ha, Justin Bieber with shorter hair.
C: It really looks like Bieber, though.
J: That is Justin Bieber with shorter hair! He got a haircut and he's singing with Rascal Flatts!
(both watching video)
J: He does not look cuter with shorter hair.
C: I know, I know. He's cute with whatever hair. He looks cute all the time.
J: No, I said he does not look cuter with shorter hair.
....
....
.....
C: Well, I guess we'll just agree to disagree.

FREE ebook download

2011-05-05T08:27:00.000-04:00

I finally did it. I published an ebook of my poems (you can read a bunch of my poetry at my secret writing blog). Those poems and more are now available for download as an ebook here. And, for the month of May, it's available for FREE using this coupon code: ZX95YSo go ahead and download, read and enjoy!
If you end up downloading (and it's free, so why not?) I really hope you like the poems!
So... now I'm off to work on the next ebook...

More Texts From My Mother

2011-05-02T14:02:00.000-04:00

(I already forewarned her this was going to happen.)

This past weekend, Jennie, KatieClack & I had our amazing big event: concert & silent auction to raise money for charity: water. And what success! We have online donations totaling $548, which will provide 27 people with clean water who did not previously have access to it! (And that's not even all of the money from the concert!)

But, as you can imagine, it was a stressful weekend. So my mother texted me a message that I'm sure she hoped would be calming. And yes, I felt much calmer when I finished laughing after I read it. Here you go!
From: Mom & Dad
My prayer for u is to ... Relax and be filled with joy, as you allow God to bring the blessings. I PRAY THAT YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ENJOY EVERYTHING TDAY .... FYI I DON'T know why caps were on or how they came off.
I love u and am proud of u.
m
xoxo

Ahhhhhh, Moms are the best!
When I told her I was going to blog that text, she wrote back: Is nothing sacred? Who knew I was so quotable!
Well, Mom, we all know.

New Advice from Cassidy

2011-04-20T10:38:00.000-04:00

The latest advice from my 5-year-old niece:

Cassidy: AUNT CHRISTY! Your jeans have a hole in them!
Me: I know.
Cassidy: How did you get that?
Me: I bought them with the hole. I didn't know they had a hole when I bought them. Isn't that silly?
Cassidy (laughing): YES. That's so silly!
Me: Seriously, though, listen to me. Never buy jeans with holes in them.
Cassidy: I won't! That's too silly!
Me: No - really. Pay attention to this: Promise me that you won't buy jeans with holes in them, no matter what the style is.
Cassidy: I won't! You're so silly!

Another day:
Cassidy (holding up a DVD in a store): I saw this one! It's about a girl who kisses a frog and he turns into a prince and then they get married!
Me: Wow.
Cassidy: But .... NEVER kiss a frog.
Me: Why? Because then you have a marry him?
Cassidy: No, because then you turn into a frog.
Me: (laughs)
Cassidy: Really. NEVER. KISS. A. FROG.
Me: Okay.

For Once, I'm Ahead of the Game

2011-04-14T00:03:00.000-04:00

I've blogged before about being late to the party when it comes to catching on to things. For example, here are some things that have recently happened in my life (and by "recent" I mean, in the past 2 months or so):
* I got Internet service at home. For the first time in my adult life. Think about that.
* I just got super into the television show Veronica Mars. Which was canceled in like 2007. You guys.... it was really good.
That's all I can think of right now.

But I actually have something to share that you didn't hear about 5 year ago. Probably.
1. Stop whatever you're doing and go and listen to Concerning Lions right now. RIGHT NOW. Seriously. GO.
I'll even do all the work! First listen to Preacher's Son (it's even better live, if you can believe it). Then listen to Bell Jar. Then Albatross. Then Young Curmudgeon. Then, for the love of all that is good, just buy the CD!
And I'll leave you with these amazing lyrics that I love:

(From Young Curmudgeon)
Run to him like a boy runs to the sea
Weigh his gentle hand down with your ring
The one I’ve often seen and hoped you might one day make mine
You listen to my long withheld complaint
I deserve your love and he your hate
You say before you go though he was dead. He’s alive!
And I won’t raise my voice or hand against your choice to set your arm round the son you lost
And I will love your earth and grow to see the worth of who he is and who I am not

(From Albatross)
I’m nothing like the boy I was
Or the man I want to be
But you’re still the girl I love
Forgive and wait for me
Forgive and wait for me

Yeesh, I love those lyrics.
And now:
2. Mackenzie Scott is amazing and young and has a gorgeous voice. Like... the type of voice you hear, and you're like, "Maybe my voice sounds like that..." so then you sing crazy loud to songs and suddenly you're like, "Nope. No. My voice isn't like hers."
Listen to Moon and Back. This girl is in college. Studying stuff, and not using her voice to sweep American Idol. It will only make her better.
Thanks, Nashville, for having such amazing musicians!!

April - National Poetry Month

2011-04-07T16:16:00.000-04:00

I had no idea!
April is NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!

This is very exciting for me, as I've been putting some poetry on my writing (secret) blog.
And... Just last night I was thinking about my favorite poet, the mystery of a man that was Edgar Allan Poe.
I know, he's a weird choice, but he's so quirky and strange and wrote such great, creepy stories!
But really, it's his rhyming that has always captured my heart. I love the rhythm, the tempo, the beats to his words.
Here are some bits of his poetry, some of the ones I love.
From Annabel Lee:

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea:
But we loved with a love that was more than love -
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.

From The Bells:

Hear the sledges with the bells -
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
While the stars that oversprinkle
All the heavens seem to twinkle
With a crystalline delight;
Keeping time, time, time,
In a sort of Runic rhyme,
To the tintinnabulation that so musically wells
From the bells, bells, bells, bells,
Bells, bells, bells -
From the jingling and the tinkling of the bells.

Ahhh, just the beginning-- read the rest for the whole story of the bells. So many sounds, so many stories.

Not rhyming, but still amazing...From The Tell-Tale Heart (we had an awesome English teacher in 7th grade ((Mr. Ferraro)), who had us memorize the beginning of this story, and my sister still shouts the opening lines anytime I say Poe's name):

TRUE! --nervous --very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses --not destroyed --not dulled them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily --how calmly I can tell you the whole story.

Oh my gosh. I love that story. I love that you are so convinced right from the start of his madness as he tells you he's not.

And of course, I'll quote The Raven, evermore. (Same English teacher had us memorize this poem -- in its entirety? I can't remember. But he was a great teacher. Always so excited about this stuff):

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! -
Whether tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted -
On this home by horror haunted - tell me truly, I implore -
Is there - is there balm in Gilead? - tell me - tell me, I implore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us - by that God we both adore -
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden, whom the angels named Lenore?'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

Oh, Lenore....

Lent, Revisited (Unfortunately)

2011-04-01T15:22:00.000-04:00

I've been avoiding this.

I know I said I'd write a poem a day for forty days for Lent ... and that I'd write about my progress during Lent ...

But the thing is (and this always happens with me and Lent!)

I totally forgot.

I wrote three poems. I wrote one the day I wrote the blog and then kept the momentum up for the next two days. And then the week later, I was like, "LENT?! I forgot!!"
and I told myself I'd get back to it, but before I could even touch pen to paper (or finger to keyboard, as the case may be), I forgot once again.

Also, this forgetfulness is really starting to grate on me. I'm for real praying about it because it's getting in the way of my actual life at this point.
Anyway: the poetry thing is done, gone. But it's cool because I actually have written a few poems during this time without remembering I was supposed to be doing it.
Last night, I wrote a fun poem that kind of touches on Cupid and Psyche because I've been obsessed lately. Years ago, I saw Antonio Canova's intricate and breathtaking sculpture at the Louvre: Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss. Then, just last week when Jennie and I were in Nashville, we saw a mini-copy of the sculpture in the Belmont Mansion, and it revived my heart.
I also tried to sketch it last night, which is totally a different story. I write, I create and I can even make cute/fun illustrations for my niece and nephew's stories, but ... sketching is ... Well, maybe I'll just call it practice.
So the update is: I forgot, and I'm throwing in the towel. But poetry will be written, it just will have nothing to do with my Lenten activity.

Texts from My Mother

2011-03-29T00:50:00.000-04:00

I once read a text from my mom out loud (to try to understand it... she had written out the word question because she couldn't find the question mark.... so: "where is tennis question") and someone said to me, "Your mom texts?"
Yes. Yes she does. And her texts are like... well, like haikus.
Or telegrams.
I've deleted some of the best, but here are a couple of from this past weekend. Things to know:
*My mother is a stickler for proper punctuation (like mother, like daughter!), so although she can't find the apostrophe on her cell phone, she refuses to type the words without something denoting the break in the words.
*She's still working on getting a strong understanding of txt msg abbreviations.
*I have no idea who E is.

Here's the text:

raining here. Hope

you,re having

better weather.

can,t wait 2 hear.

The next day:

How,s tn? hope

you,re having fun.

will u b able to have

dinner w us mon.

nite?

c u soon.

love

xoxo

Gotta love it!

A Neglectful Blogger

2011-03-22T23:26:00.001-04:00

A couple of things have been happening lately that have made me a neglectful blogger. But... it's okay, right? Because I'm doing productive things...
But here's what's happening in life:

WE'RE HAVING A PARTY!

(kind of.)

Jennie, Katie of-the-family-we-adore and I are holding a benefit for charity: water.
It will be the most amazing of all concerts and a silent auction that will make you want to throw money at the artists. Seriously. I've seen the paintings we've received so far, and I'm trying to figure out what to sell so I can bid on them.
Read more »

Announcement!!

2011-03-14T07:23:00.005-04:00

I am proud to announce the birth of my first NEPHEW!

Colten Miller
8 lbs. 3 oz.
21 inches long
He is beautifully perfect and cuddly. God knew I needed a cuddly nephew :)

The Lent Season

2011-03-09T10:12:00.000-05:00

I asked on my facebook status yesterday what people were giving up for Lent and what suggestions they might have for me. Here's what folks answered:
•Carbs :( Yeah, the sad face was included in the post, and for good reason. Giving up carbs is NO FUN.
•Chocolate was suggested to me by none other than our very own Jennie Waller, who obviously knows nothing of me if she thinks I can sustain a 40-day period without chocolate. (I'm drinking hot cocoa as I write this)
•Soda, fried food, cursing, drinking & texting while driving. Uh, wow. Either this person has a lot of vices, or thinks that I do. I kid, I kid!
Read more »

The Oscars, A Week Later

2011-03-07T13:30:00.000-05:00

So, the big question for the evening at the Clack's annual Academy Awards Party was: Is Oscar naked?
Is he nude and weirdly missing his God-given parts, like a Ken doll? Or is he wearing a bodysuit (a gorgeous gold lame one!)?
Either way: I went to my FOURTH Clack Academy Awards Party this year. It boggles my mind that it was my fourth year, but it was.
My dates for the year were Ed Norton and Marky Mark Wahlberg. Jennie's date was Joseph Gordon-Levitt (I didn't see him all night, though!). Other dates of the evening:
Read more »

It literally rained...

2011-03-01T09:21:00.001-05:00

So there we were, getting ready for the benefit concert at The Channel -- the concert that would fight to keep the doors open to our favorite place in downtown, and the skies opened up.
And my first thought was, "Oh, no... this will keep people away!"
The Channel is a family-oriented, Christ-centered music venue downtown that features local bands, as well as major names in the music industry, and Jennie and I have been blessed to be volunteers there for a few years.
And, uh, we've written about it ... a few times.
Read more »

Help us Help the Channel!

2011-02-23T07:47:00.004-05:00

HELP! The Channel needs to raise $20,000 this week to keep operating. The Channel means so much to so many, please consider donating to help them keep the doors open.

Here is a note from the owner/operator.

"Dear Channel Family,

Jay here. I just wanted to take a minute to share an urgent need with you. As you know we moved back to Downtown in June of 2010. It has been an exciting time, but it has also been a trying time. During start up in the new location, and with the projections we had for the restaurant, we hoped we would be in a much different place financially.

We have had several obstacles as we have moved forward with our vision for The Channel. For those of you who may not have had the chance to come to the new place yet, we have moved to a 14000 sq ft building in the heart of the city. Our renovations ended up costing more than we had planned for, as it always seems to happen that way. We opened Grille 33 on June 12th to help generate some cash flow as we continued to work on the venue. We had to be out of the old location on Orchard Park by the end of March meaning we were closed for almost three months between locations.

We had our first show at the end of July with Brian Head Welch. For those of you who are, and have been faithful supporters/concert goers, you must have noticed that our concert numbers haven’t been what they were at the old location. The reason for that is we needed to build another staircase to provide a second entrance/exit from the venue level. With that being said, we have taken a pretty hard blow financially. We went from doing 20 plus events a month to prior to this month only doing at the most 11 in any given month. The next part should be real easy to understand. Our expenses went up with the new location, but our show numbers went down. That can only do one thing, and that is create a gap.

As you all know, or should know by now, The Channel isn’t about Jay and Amanda McAbee. It’s about YOU! We exist as a place where everyone can feel like they are a part of the big picture. From the local opener that gets booked to play a show with their favorite National artist to the regular concertgoer. The Channel is here to meet many needs, and fill many voids in the community. The exciting part for us is meeting each and every one of you, and developing new relationships.

The Channel was actually started 15 yrs ago as The Carpenters Cellar. It was located in downtown, but in an underground location that was very small. My wife and I took it over 5 years ago with a new and fresh vision. We have grown, moved twice, and outgrown every location we have been in up to this point. With growth comes change, and with change comes responsibility. We opened Grille 33 as an attempt to help fund The Channel. Within the first several months of opening, we found ourselves in a tough place. The Channel is a 501(c)3 non-profit, but Grille 33 is for profit. The issue was that Grille 33 had only made about 20% of its projections from start up. There were factors that contributed to this that were out of our control. It forced us to shift our focus from The Channel to the Grille. We have worked very hard over the tough winter months to turn the Grille around and get it to turn a profit. Just to build your faith as you are reading this message, 3 months ago the Grille was over $33000 in the negative. Today it is now starting to turn a profit. The turn around for the Grille has been an awesome testimony of faith, and a belief that anything is possible if you just believe.

The last week of December we got a donation to build the staircase that I mentioned. We worked so hard to turn the Grille around that The Channel had taken a back seat. The staircase was started in January, and I have started booking heavily again. We had 26 events this month alone, and I have dates booked out into June already. Events in March include 5 dates with National artists. One big one is March 25th with Brian Head Welch returning to The Channel for a second time.

What we have at The Channel is something very special. It’s a place to connect, to build relationships, to have accountability, a place to belong. Being a non-profit, we have weathered the storms of financial struggle with fundraising, and donations, which leads me to the hard question: does The Channel mean something special to you?

If so we need your help. We need to raise $20,000 in the next seven days. I know I may have just lost some of you, but hear me out first. We have 737 followers of our group on Facebook. What we have is strength in numbers. If everyone would get involved we could meet this need with no problem. If all 737 people donated $27 we would meet our need or if only 200 of you gave $100. It’s a small request to make if you believe in The Channel.

The reality is The Channel is not just a cool place to go see a show, or to hang with friends. Don’t get me wrong, it totally is that, but it’s more. It’s a story of Faith, a belief that, “All things are possible.” We could’ve never made it this far without YOU. I hope every person that reads this will consider how he or she could help. Please don’t just read this and say, “someone else will do it”, because what if they don’t. I’ve never sent a message like this before, so please understand the need is real. I can’t say what will happen if people don’t respond, but I can say our future is bright if you do.

Thanks for your time and consideration,

Jay

How to give:

Come to The Channel
Call the Channel 552-1945

Send it in the mail:
The Channel
221 North Main Street
Greenville, SC 29601

Through Paypal via:
http://followmegreenville.blogspot.com/p/how-to-give.html

Please include your name, address, email/phone number if you would like a tax deductible receipt."

Mighty Hand/Oustretched Arm

2011-02-22T15:12:00.000-05:00

Check it.
God has been moving

Swiftly

lately.

Awesome.
It's not just in my life, and it's not just in the lives of my friends and the people around me. But it's all of that: my life, my friends' lives and the lives of the people around me.

I love it.
Read more »

Dreary Day...

2011-02-17T15:10:00.000-05:00

Today is a bit...

dreary.

It's a little bit rainy out.

The sun is hiding.

And I'm in a bad,
bad mood.

So I'm adding this picture of sunshine to the blog, to make me feel better.

One of the ways I get out of a funk like this, is to listen to good, up-tempo music. I think once I'm done typing this post, I'll put on some of my favorites, like Switchfoot, or House of Heroes ... or maybe my soundtrack from The Sound of Music. Yeah - that might really make me feel better! Ooh, maybe some Needtobreathe.
Yes - even just thinking about what music to listen to is lifting the fog from my head!

It also helps me to write when I get like this, so that's an option, too. Or maybe I'll just head over to Jennie's little square of space and chat with her, because that always puts me in a better mood.

Here's to sunny days and rainbows and butterflies and all that good stuff! And hey - it's supposed to be really warm and sunny tomorrow, and that's always good news!

Pictures

2011-02-16T12:02:00.004-05:00

I went to the Greenwood to take a few pics of the Mommy and Daddy to be.
Here are a few of my favorites:

We are getting close!

A New Version of the Cat Lady

2011-02-14T11:12:00.000-05:00

I have a confession to make: I think I am becoming a cat lady. Well, not quite cat lady...

I am always on guard. Always. I designed the Cat Lady Equation specifically for this -- to make sure that I do not become a cat lady and to help prevent friends from becoming cat ladies. (I can only help those who want to be helped ... Loggins).
But as I recently mentioned, I'm trying to do a lot more crafty stuff ... like do-it-myself (DIM) things around the house. But since I'm cheap, the DIM things are pretty limited.
Read more »

Part of a Bigger Group!

2011-02-10T10:16:00.001-05:00

Check it out:
Our blog is featured on Faithblogs.net - a web site that acts as sort of a fun (and pretty!) database for awesome Christ-centered blogs.
Yay!
We're under the "loving life" group, which is rad, since Jennie and I do have that je ne sais quoi, that zest for life, that joie de vivre!
So while you're there, browse around for some more blogs you might love. One of my favorites is Jamie, the Very Worst Missionary (who, by the way, is not the very worst missionary, but she is one of the very best bloggers and I always look forward to her posts.

I will be looking at the crafts blogs on the site, because ....
Read more »

I'm going to be an aunt!

2011-02-10T10:05:00.008-05:00

In about a month, I will turn 27 years old AND I will become an aunt for the FIRST TIME. I am beyond excited! I plan on being the cool aunt (like most want to be) by:
1. Spending enormous amounts of time with that child
2. Making sure he/she is the best dressed child
3. Spoiling him/her beyond repair
4. Praying for him/her relentlessly
5. Taking rock star photos of him/her growing up

do you see a theme? We don't yet know the sex of the baby. It will be a surprise for the BIG day!

I can't wait. Any guesses on what the baby will be?

BOY or GIRL?

Confession time.

2011-02-08T13:36:00.007-05:00

Confession time: I have been dragging my feet. BIG TIME.
Procrastination is definitely something I struggle with and people close to me can testify to that one!
One example of my extreme procrastination occurred in my Senior Seminar class at Upstate. Every student is required to take some sort of Senior Seminar class before they can graduate. In my senior seminar class, I had to conduct a research project. All I can say is the class is an entire semester for a reason. You are supposed to work on the project the entire semester. I waited until the last three days of the semester to begin working on mine. I did nothing but type and drink coffee for three days straight to complete my final research paper (that I had to pass to graduate). I got a B+.
I often feel like maybe if I was given consequences for my procrastination, then I wouldn't do it anymore. Although, I am not completely sure that would make a difference.
I was listening to a sermon by one of my favorite pastors, Pete Wilson, titled More. He was talking about how when God calls us to something faith-filled, we often run to our hiding place. We can run to insecurity, fear or procrastination. He wanted each person to take a minute to think about what their hiding place was, but I didn't need a second to think. I knew instantly. My hiding place is procrastination. It is so easy to run to procrastination and people understand the excuse: "I am just too busy." or "I haven't been able to get around to it yet."

"Big moves of God are almost always preceded by obedience to Him in the small things." Start with the small things that God asks of you and build on those. How do you break the cycle? Intentionality in spending time with God and being disciplined in staying in the Word.
Where is your hiding place?

The Channel - Everything is happening

2011-02-07T15:52:00.000-05:00

Head on over to Amanda's blog to see what's going on at The Channel - the place where Jennie & I love to volunteer and see our favorite bands. Very exciting stuff. I love seeing what God does through and for Jay & Amanda!

www.followmegreenville.blogspot.com

Two Short Stories for the Price of ... well, none -- it's free!

2011-02-06T15:01:00.001-05:00

I've been working on my fiction writing, and getting better about submitting my short stories to online literary magazine to be published, and it's paying off!

Two just went up online this week:
Hot Heat
This is a twisted story about a twisted kid. It's Jennie's favorite short story of mine, randomly. :)
There's actually a lot I like about this kid - even though he's a sociopath -
Read more »

More Things Jennie Says

2011-02-04T09:44:00.001-05:00

It's been forever, and unfortunately I don't have time to really plan a post, but I wanted to share a few wonderful bits of advice from Jennie that have tickled me lately.

This quote is best taken out of context and explained later, so:

"Christy, STOP LISTENING to your family!
They are ruining your reputation!"

Explanation:
Read more »

Feminine/Masculine

2011-01-26T10:36:00.001-05:00

We really missed the boat in the English language, as far as I'm concerned...
When I was learning French in high school, the nouns are either feminine or masculine words, and you need to know which one, so that you know whether to use "la" or "le" before them (la is for feminine nouns, le is for masculine). So "the cat" is: le chat (masculine), and "the house" is la maison (feminine). Interesting, huh?
Read more »

The Cherry on Top of a Great Friendship

2011-01-25T14:04:00.001-05:00

"What is wrong with America today?!"

That's what Jennie exclaimed at lunch today, in response to something I told her.
I'll back up and start at the beginning:
Jennie has my back. Always. This is a truth that I can rely on, and I love it about her, and I hope that I'm the same kind of friend to her that she is to me.
Read more »

God and His Wacky Sense of Humor

2011-01-19T10:25:00.001-05:00

People say this a lot: "Well, God has a sense of humor!" and it's never in response to a funny joke you just told them, like they're commenting on how God created us and our funnies. It's always stated in response to some weird thing you're dealing with, like how something crazy nutso is happening in your life and you're like, "What? And, also, why?" and that's when someone comes along (usually my mom) and she's all, "Well, God sure does have a sense of humor, right?"
So this:
Read more »

Lessons from my Niece

2011-01-17T08:54:00.002-05:00

Kids teach us so many lessons. But I have to say, I've learned more about "being a woman" from my niece than any 30-year-old should learn from a 4-year-old.
I will say that she has been extremely girly, ever since she was little.

She makes sure that she always coordinates everything. And maybe it's Gymboree's fault, with their tights that match the skirt that match the cardigan that match the hairbow. But my niece is all about matching.
She takes risks with her looks, too, though. She'll put together shades of colors that would make any fashion expert cringe, in theory. But when she's tearing through the house and all you see is a blur of orange and pink, somehow it works.
And, every day is a fashion show.
Read more »

One Word 2011

2011-01-14T10:51:00.006-05:00

I read several blogs in which they have decided to choose
ONE word
that will define their year (instead of making resolutions).

I really liked the idea, but I had already made my resolutions. So, I have decided to do both.
I knew my word, instantly! I even commented on one of the blogs with my word: Challenge.

"Good word, Jennie. Good word."

Then...BOOM!
I started to feel like God was giving me a different word to define my year, and I wasn't happy about it.
Contentment.
Man....God, Why?! Why contentment?!
I struggle with contentment. I am restless a lot....with my life and circumstances.
I need to strive for Contentment, not in the sense that I will be complacent and inactive in my life, but okay with where God has me. I still have desires that I feel are God-given, but I have to be content with what God has given me. So here goes trying!

Matthew 11:28-29

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Philippians 4:11-13

I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

A Verse for the Year

2011-01-07T14:24:00.001-05:00

I used to be totally into celebrity gossip. I don't even know how I got into it... it's just one of those things that starts out slowly and snowballs out of control.
It could start like this:
Me: I like this song... who sings it?
Someone Else: So-and-so. Did you know he's dating (someone else famous)?
Me: No way!
.... a few weeks later ...
Someone Else: Oh, remember that singer you liked who was dating (someone else famous?)
Me: YEAH?
Read more »

Happiness

2011-01-05T10:35:00.007-05:00

What brings you happiness?
Money? Success? Dream Job? Spouse?
When you look at wealthy people, what do you see? More possessions than any normal person could dream of.
They aren't truly happy. They buy things because they think it will make them happy, but it is an endless cycle.
I often think that I know what will bring me happiness. Marriage, a bigger house, a nicer car, a skinnier body.
Sure, at first, all of those things will make me happy. They will not, however, bring me true LASTING happiness. The joy will be momentary.
If someone asked me to describe myself, I would not list CONTROL FREAK as one of my characteristics. When I take a look at my life, my decisions and my desires, I am the biggest CONTROL FREAK I know. I bargain with God to get my way. I try to manipulate situations to get what I want. I do what I want without asking if it is God's Will. Most of the time I don't even realize I am doing it....
I try to control the situation because I think that if I get what I want....it will make me happy.

Matthew 5:6
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."

Memory Loss

2011-01-04T16:03:00.002-05:00

I've mentioned this a couple of times, but my memory is pretty bad. And it got a lot worse this past fall with all the stress I had (I know, I know, I'll stop mentioning it!).
So, when netflix recommended a documentary to me about a guy that loses his memory, I totally jumped at it.
Here's the story: a man *wakes up* or *comes to* or whatever, on a subway in NYC. He has no identification and doesn't know who he is, where he's going, or where he came from. He has a backpack with a few items: a language/travel book, some medicine of some sort (later found out to be dog medicine) and two sets of keys. Also: he has a British accent.
Read more »

New Years Resolutions

2011-01-02T20:30:00.003-05:00

We are officially in the NEW YEAR....2011. Wow, how did that happen so fast?

Christy and I were discussing how well we did on accomplishing our 2010 Resolutions last week. So, I am pumped to start working on my 2011 New Years Resolutions. So far, I have been pretty lazy this year :) but I think I have some great resolutions to work on.

So here it goes.

1. Read MORE books, Buy LESS books.

I have the tendency to buy books and never read them. It will also help me financially to use the library for the majority of my reading material :)

2. Apply/Attend Graduate School.

I have decided to pursue Graduate School. So my goal is to apply and start in 2011!

3. Skydive

I have wanted to do this for a few years and I think this is the year!

4. Reach my Goal Weight.

I have been doing weight watchers for several months and haven't been too serious about it. So I want to buckle down and reach my goal weight. It is VERY possible and I would only have to lose about 5 lbs. per month.

5. Start running again.

This one is tough for me. I have a love/hate relationship with running. In my mind, I want to be a runner. I used to run. I hated every second, but I loved the way it made me feel. So I am going to give it another try. But I want to lose about 10 more lbs. before I start.

6. Travel.

That is ALWAYS on my list. I love to travel, so every year I want to go somewhere new, somewhere I have never been before.

So here it goes! I am ready! Are you?

Fortune Cookies and Such

2011-01-01T23:03:00.000-05:00

"A friend will soon tell you an exciting secrets!"

"Keep smiling. It makes people wonder what you've been up to."

"Don't trust a ho, never trust a ho. Don't trust a ho, don't trust me."

These were the fortune cookies I've gotten in the past 24 hours (and I didn't even order any Chinese food!). On New Year's Eve, I partied with the Clack clan, and we wrote our own fortunes and folded them into home-made fortune cookies. Yum! That recipe made the best fortune cookies I've ever tasted. I got the last two fortunes listed (and as you can see, we had a wide range of fortunes written for those!). Then, today on 1/1/11, I stopped by my parent's house, and ate a fortune cookie that my mom had gotten from her lunch today. That was the first fortune I listed.
So I guess that if the last thing I did last year, and the first thing I did this year (well...one of the first things) sets the tone for the rest of the year, then I'll be eating a lot of yummy food this year!
Or maybe... I'll be traveling to foreign lands and experiencing new cultures.
OR MAYBE... I should expect an exciting secret, keep smiling, and never trust a ho.

In other news, feast your ears on this:

Places to Go and People to See (or.... My Resolutions)

2010-12-30T08:37:00.000-05:00

Last year, I posted my New Year's resolutions for 2010, and I think that posting them and keeping a list of them hanging in my cubicle really helped me do pretty well in accomplishing them.
I've been working on them for 2011, and I think I've got a good start.
Numero Uno on my list is a leftover from 2010 (yes, I have quite a few of those...):
Finish. The. Book. As in THE book. My book. oh broken son. It's a good book, really. And one day, maybe someone other than me will read it.
That's under my "Mental" heading, and it's the only one listed there.
Any suggestions?
Maybe I'll set a goal about reading books or something.
Under the "Physical" heading, I have some repeats that will be on my lists annually until I'm physically unable to do them anymore:
Continue to improve in tennis
and Travel somewhere awesome.
(that last one is my faaaaaavorite resolution every year! Plus, it can be combined with other resolutions, like...)
My next one under the Physical heading is:
See Federer Play!
Yes, I've had this on my list for a long time. Every year, I wait with bated breath, hoping that Federer will say, "I'll be back again next year!" at the end of his speeches. Please do not retire, Roger Federer, until I get to see you play in person. So I printed out his 2011 Schedule, and I'm trying to decide where to go. Some are ....easier (but expensive) choices like Miami or Cincinnati, and some are awesome but expensive choices, like Roland Garros in Paris or MADRID OR ROME OR GERMANY.... Ahhhh, choices.
Next heading: Spiritual
My two resolutions here are:
Read the Bible in one year (my church is doing this, so I've got a schedule and about 300 people supporting me), and
Go on a Missions Trip. yikes. but yes.
My last heading is Social, and the two resolutions under it are repeats from last year
Do something out of my comfort zone (like, go on a missions trip, perhaps?) and
Make new friends ( ♫ ♪ but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold ♪ ♫).
So I've got my work cut out for me, but there are definitely some things that I can do that would check off several resolutions in one fell swoop. But really, this is the year to see Federer. I'm feeling that.

Luke 2:1-20

2010-12-25T13:32:00.000-05:00

Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.

This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.

Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.

While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.

And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us."

So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.

When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.

And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.

But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.

The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

'Tis the Season...

2010-12-22T16:52:00.000-05:00

Is there anything worse?
Is there anything worse than Ralphie standing in line forever, just to see Santa and tell him (because Santa will understand!) that he wants an
Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle for Christmas, but when Ralphie finally gets up there to Santa, he can't get the words out -- because it's Santa! --
and then, just as he's about to go down the slide, he remembers his wish and he opens his mouth, and after having everyone in the world tell him that he can't get his beloved BB gun because he'll shoot his eye out, he tells Santa
   exactly
    what
            he
                   wants

and what does Santa say?
"You'll shoot your eye out, kid!" with a boot! to the face! that sends Ralphie spiraling down the slide.
So what could be worse?
Maybe, if you're six, and you've never heard of A Christmas Story, let alone watched it, and you inexplicably put BB Gun on your Christmas list, and your aunt finds it (your super cool, super with-it aunt who spoils you rotten and only demands hugs in return), and she laughs and shows the list to your mother, and the two of them hunt you down and find you just to laugh some more and say together, "You'll shoot your eye out, kid!" (which, again, means nothing to you because you have never seen the movie).

That might be worse.

Merry Christmas, nephew. You're not getting a BB gun. You'll shoot your eye out, Kid.

When does the self confidence come into the picture?

2010-12-20T09:43:00.005-05:00

"It comes with age!"
No, self confidence does not come with age. Self-consciousness shifts to different areas of your life as you grow.
When I was younger I was very self conscious about my appearance and my weight. I basically wanted to fit in and be liked. Although those things are still on my mind, it does not consume me like it once did. As I get older, my lack of self confidence shifts to abilities, talents and knowledge. I want to have self confidence in the things that I choose to do. And this is the only way....
Psalm 118:6-8
⁶ The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me? ⁷ Yes, the Lord is for me; he will help me. I will look in triumph at those who hate me.
⁸ It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people.

Beautiful Things - A Beautiful Song

2010-12-19T15:48:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I'm late to the party, and sometimes, I'm right on time (thanks to others who are totally with it). So here's a song by Gungor, whom I'd never heard of before today, but I will be purchasing their music immediately. Check it out: Beautiful Things:

Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

Galations 2:17-21

The Best (and the worst) Christmas Songs

2010-12-15T14:41:00.000-05:00

Now that it's almost Christmas, the radios are aliiiiive with carols.
Here are ones to watch for and either turn up or tune out!
My favorite carol:
O Holy Night - Luckily, there are so many great versions of this song. I love a powerful version and Celine Dion and Mariah Carey have great versions. There's an a capella version by Martina McBride and an instrumental version by some musicians from New Orleans.
Updating an oldie but goodie: Check out Seabird's new arrangement of Silent Night. Love it!
House of Heroes has a few awesome songs:
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
and a new take on Ms. Carey's
All I Want for Christmas Is You
(does anyone else remember back when her Christmas album first came out back in '94 and she did a whole special on MTV with Carson Daly?)
Another awesome new version of one of my holiday favorites: Sent by Ravens' Happy Christmas (War is Over).
I have always enjoyed this song, and the new version really does it justice.
Song I miss the most:
Dominic the Italian Christmas Donkey
Back in NJ, the radio station z100 (which was like, the coolest station back in seventh grade) used to play this all the time. Haven't heard it since I moved south.
There are some other songs that are favorites: I've always loved the Bing Crosby and David Bowie duet of Peace on Earth & The Little Drummer Boy, and of course, anything holiday by Dean Martin and Nat King Cole.

Here are the worst holiday songs. The WORST. Do not listen to them. Don't!
That Christmas Shoes song where (spoiler!) the mother is dead. It's like a Nicholas Sparks novel. At first when you're listening, you're like, "This is mediocre," and then WHAM! the mother is dead. or dying. or something.
I'm not linking to that song. That's how angry it makes me.
Mary Did You Know? This is the most somber and depressing thing ever. (I really dislike songs that celebrate the joy of our salvation in a terribly mournful way). And also: what's the point? Here's a trick: start at the lowest register possible with your voice and slowly and painfully sing each word a note higher than the last "Mary, Did You Know...". You just sang the first 4 words of that song.
And the answer is: Yes, she knew. Remember? The angel appeared, told her she was preggers and told her what to name the baby. She knew.
I'm of the opinion that anything sung by the Chipmunks is pretty awful, but this is probably the worst: All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth.
This might be a bit of a person choice, because long ago I did, in fact, have a gap where my front two teeth should have been one Christmas, and my family just had a ball saying/singing this to me.

Year End Wrap-Up

2010-12-13T11:30:00.000-05:00

Way back when, I posted some of my New Year's resolutions for 2010, and about mid-year, I gave a brief update. Well, here's the final tally:
•Continue running with LJ - oh, no ... that did NOT happen. But that was a conscious descision on my part.
•Run another half marathon -- again, didn't happen due to the realization that running a half marathon makes me a tired and sore girl. Half marathon?! I couldn't have made the goal a 5K? I did that!
•Travel somewhere awesome -- yes! I went to New Orleans for my birthday. This is one of the ones where I realized I completed the goal after I had done it. But traveling somewhere awesome is kind of always in the back of my mind, so it's a good goal to put down every year.
•Continue working on tennis - oh and how. That's a yes.
•Double money earned on freelance projects -- I ended up doing this right in the beginning of year, luckily. And, by the way, doubling the money wasn't too hard, since I had earned probably $30 on freelance stuff back in '09.
•Take a writing class or attend a conference -- this was the biggie, and the one I focused on the most. Success! And it was lots of fun.
•Finish "the book". You know, "THE" book. The one that I've been working on forever -- this wasn't the year. In fact, I didn't write much in THE book at all. But I did write a bunch of fun short stories, and rediscovered my love of writing. I think I needed a break from THE book, and this was a great year to take a break. In a way, I don't feel unaccomplished on this one, even though the goal wasn't achieved. I'm thinking 2011 will be THE year to finish THE book.
•Read the Bible - check! Not as much as I should have, but a check. And this will be a recurring goal.
•Read Fearless with my girlfriends - yes. At least... we read as much of it as we could take. It just wasn't for us. But if you want a recommendation for an amazing book to study with friends: Plan B by Pete Wilson. Do it.
•Book Club - Nope. Total slacker on this one.
•Poker Night - well, you say no enough times and you just stop getting invited. So slacker on this one, too.
•Something out of my comfort zone -- hmmm... I'll have to think about this one, but I don't really think it happened. I am very much a "stay in the comfort zone" type of girl. I might try again for 2011.
•Make new friends/build relationships with old -- yeah, this happened, but it's always good to keep doing this. (Is it weird this is a goal? I feel like this is kind of a weird goal to have...)
Overall, I'm pretty happy with how I did on my resolutions. I think it definitely helped that I wrote them down and kept them in front of me all year long. On to an even better and brighter 2011!!

Saving Up Memories

2010-12-09T09:35:00.002-05:00

I'm not a pack-rat -- in fact, I tend to throw a lot of stuff out prematurely just because I don't want anything cluttering up my life. But there are some things I've kept through the years -- cards, letters, pictures... I went through this stuff over the past two nights and read through it all, my mind just flooding with memories.
I have tons of old pictures - some really funny pictures from college and the couple of years afterward with my New Jersey girls (these were the days before digital cameras, so I have some really weird pictures that just make me laugh and laugh when I look at them), pictures of the family from when I was little, a lot of pictures of my old dog, Tootsie, and an entire album filled with pictures of me during my awkward adolescent stage (they are awesomely bad and I am happy to share them with anyone -- they are a cautionary tale).
Trish and I went through a letter-writing stage in college and the two or three years afterward, and I kept many of those letters. They are mostly funny, but there's one that is just words of encouragement that was sent to me in the the few weeks before I left for my big Australian adventure.
I have treasures: a card from my uncle to me, written the year he died, and sweet cards from my mother over the years. My mom is really wonderful in this way - she sends me cards with really encouraging or loving messages that make me feel great. I have a card that she gave to me right before I left for Australia that I kept with me the entire time I traveled.
My biggest treasure, though, is a tiny note card from a close family friend, written just a couple of years before she died. I'll call her Mrs. B. so that those of you who know me, know who I'm talking about. She was my mother's friend from the neighborhood, she had a son who was born a month before me and we were each others first friends. I always felt at home in their house and I can still remember the smell of their kitchen (Mrs. B. was always baking pies -- that's one memory I have of her -- always baking). When I was in college, I found out that she was diagnosed with ALS, and my mom and I would visit her whenever I was home on break. We'd sit with her and chat and laugh or talk about her treatment and pray and cry. As the illness progressed, I'd chat while my mom cleaned her house, or painted her nails, or wrote down the details Mrs. B. wanted at her memorial service.
The card is a thank you note from one of my visits with her. In it, she included Jeremiah 29:11-13:

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

And then, she wrote about how she knew me before I was born, and how she knows that God has good plans for me. Needless to say, I cry every time I read the note -- because I miss her, and I wish we'd had more time. It's funny, the card moves directly from the verse into her writing, "I knew you before you were born..." and I always read that as part of the verse (every time!), and then I realize it's her saying it to me ... and that's usually when the crying begins. Anyway, she was an amazing woman and I think about her and her family all the time and that card is the thing I hold most dear in my box of memories.

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. -Philippians 3:20-21

Sometimes I feel....

2010-12-07T16:33:00.003-05:00

Sometimes I feel like I am just going through the motions of life.
Doing what everybody expects.
Participating in what I have committed my time to.
Many times I don't even feel like I am in my own body.
Time to re-evaluate?
I think so.

"But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you."
Psalm 39:7

Late to the Party

2010-11-23T21:10:00.001-05:00

I am awesome at discovering things like 5 years after everyone else. And then telling everyone all about the awesome thing I just discovered, and the entire world is like, "Yeah, yeah... that was good. Five years ago. We're on to the new big thing now."
It's kind of my calling in life: reminding people of that awesome thing they loved a few years ago. Lately I got really super duper into Entourage, which is a dumb but fun TV show. And I got my brother into it, and we're leaving like the worst jokes on each other's facebook pages that would totally have been funny to culturally literate people way back when they were watching these episodes in 2006.
I'm at it again, and since I not only discover things late, but I go crazy over them and let them consume my life, I will share with you my latest and greatest discovery: Reach Records. I have to say Reach Records instead of a particular artist that's on the label, because I really like them all. Now... I am not your typical rap listener, and I wouldn't even say I'm normally into rap (except... I'm crazy about spoken word, of course, and that's a lot like rapping). But I am into good music and amazing lyrics. These lyrics are amazing.
I would say to check out Trip Lee and Lecrae and just let each song take you to the next and find your favorites.
Here's one of MY new favorites:
Background by Lecrae, featuring C-Lite:

Philippians 4:4-5
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

I did it, and it's over

2010-11-22T12:01:00.000-05:00

My season as captain is over. Over! Can you believe it? I can't!
I wrote to my sister today: No more racquets, no more balls! No more questionable out calls!
This is what I learned from my tenure as captain of the 3.0 women's tennis team:
•Stress causes me to lose my mind. Literally. I could not remember a thing for the two and a half months that I was dealing with tennis. I didn't remember normal things, like putting on make-up before coming to work. I forgot plans with friends. I lost entire conversations, so that when people referenced them later I had no idea what they were talking about.
•I am a pretty organized person ... to the point of micro-managing. I probably would have guessed I was a micro-manager before this season, just because I don't trust many other people to do things correctly (because... they don't). So, yes, my poor team got about 2-3 emails from me a week.
•I have little patience for certain things. Like... don't reply to my email and ask a question that was addressed in the email. Hence, my micro-management. 2-3 emails per week, all saying the same thing. Read 'em.
•I don't ever, ever, ever want to be captain again.
So, a big thanks to all family, friends and strangers who had to speak to me over the past two and a half months. You were dealing with the Hulk, even if you didn't realize it. And while tennis made me pretty crazy ...
.... not, like, this crazy....

....but still pretty crazy, it's over now, and hopefully my memory will return, my micro-managing tendencies will subside, and my email inbox count will go down.
Woohoo! Great season and great team, but happy to be done!

Time for a Change

2010-11-19T15:39:00.001-05:00

A few weekends ago, I went to New Jersey for some much-needed time with friends. It was amazing!
They are so much fun, and they really bent over backwards to accommodate my every whim. We went into NYC, but stayed out of Times Square, which was a specific request of mine. We had a fancy lunch in the city and walked around and looked at funky consignment shops in Greenwich Village, before taking the train home. We visited our old stomping grounds at Rutgers, and I was able to buy a million scarlet and black RU shirts/sweatshirts/license plate holders to last me until the next time I visit. We ate at Friendly's and a diner. We got our nails done and made-our-own sundaes. And best of all, I got to laugh and hang out with them, hug and hold their babies, and revel in the time with some of my oldest friends. It was a great time.
But...
I realized on my drive home from the airport
   that I was happy to come home
                                            anxious to leave NJ
                                                                 but most astonishingly.....
                                                                                                     I was
                        in a terrible mood.

How dare I, right? I mean, they took time off of work, they drove me everywhere I wished. They treated me like a queen (and they would think nothing of it, I promise you! This is how they are for their friends!). But really, my bad attitude had nothing to do with my awesome friends, or the things we did while we were all together, because, like I said: It was amazing.

Last year, when I visited for a wedding, these were their stats:
Friend 1: Getting married, apartment, great job as lawyer, no kids
Friend 2: Newly Married, brand new house they are working on, finished grad. school/looking for job, no kids
Friend 3: Married for a couple of years, house for a couple of years, great job as accountant, no kids.

Here are the stats this year:
Friend 1: Newly married, new apartment, same great job as lawyer, no kids
Friend 2: Married for a couple of years, new house is finished, great new job as a communications director, brand new baby
Friend 3: Married for a couple of years, house with newly remodeled kitchen, same great job as accountant, brand new baby

These were my stats a year ago:
Single, same lovely house, same ... job, no kids

My stats this year:
Single, same lovely house, same ... job, no kids.

Look, it's not just that I wish I was married (I do), or that I wish I had a brand new baby (I do), or that I wish I had a more awesome job (I do). It's all of that, together.
So I'm working on things, because nothing will get better just by me sitting and wishing it. I'm pretty optimistic about things, and I'm hoping that when I visit again in a year, I'll have more new things to share with them.
(well, yeesh! I was optimistic, before I wrote out this post and saw it all in print!)

Heaven is for Real: Book Review

2010-11-15T09:23:00.000-05:00

I received a complimentary copy of Heaven is for Real from Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for an unbiased review.
I am never the person that stays up all night reading a book, so when I read the glowing praise in the front of Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent, I didn't think anything of turning to the first chapter at 11 pm. I couldn't put the book down.
The nonfiction story begins when Colton Burpo, the author's son, had to have emergency surgery while still a toddler. After making it through some harrowing and prayer-filled nights, the family returned to normal. That is, until a few months later, when during a drive past the hospital where Colton had his surgery, he describes it as the place "where the angels sang to me."
Todd and his wife follow this enigmatic thread until it is revealed that Colton has other-worldly memories from when he was under an anesthetic during his surgery. In fact, his parents continue to question him over time and hear his descriptions of heaven -- seeing Jesus, meeting his great-grandfather, what the angels look like, and even describing events that are out of sync with the time-line of our universe.
I was fascinated by Colton's descriptions of Jesus and God, and even more intrigued by a few of the memories that stood out to him and that he repeated to his parents to stress the importance of their themes. I've thought a lot about some of the things Colton describes, some of the images have really stayed with me since I read the book. Whether or not Colton saw the real heaven, the book is gripping and you won't be able to put it down.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Slackers

2010-11-12T16:55:00.000-05:00

Yeah, we know. We've been slackers. We're aware, okay? It's been kind of a busy week... or two. But I have a new book review that's ready to go, as soon as I get the stuff I need from the review program, so you have that to look forward to (Mom and Dad, since you're probably the only people who read this). And clearly, that's Jennie in that picture since that girl has brown hair.

And for your enjoyment, I have some Friday fun:

What, pray-tell, is this?

I thought it was a mitten or something when I came across it, but in my defense (yeesh! I hate that phrase!), I think the image was smaller.

ANSWER: It's a rocking chair. Like, for a real adult-sized human. As in, a person actually sits and rocks on that thing.

NEXT!

What in the world is this?

Again, when I saw it, I kept thinking, "Flip that thing over and it's a lop-sided basket that someone's child brought home from arts & crafts at their sleepaway camp." Wrongo, again!

ANSWER: It's a footstool.

Did you get both right? Did you get either right? Well, if you did, you win the joy of applying for a job with Ikea! Go for it, because you and that company are like-minded.

But seriously - stop back next week, when Jennie and I will post again. Sometime. Someday.

Driving Lessons from a Yankee

2010-11-03T11:00:00.001-04:00

It's not that I think drivers in the south are bad, per se. They're just not good.
I learned how to drive from an angry gym teacher and an aged rock & roller. The class and the actual time spent driving were odd, to say the least, but both men gave me really good tips about driving, and helped form me into a decent driver.
Here are some safety tips and - y'know - advice based on actual driving laws from a Jersey girl.
Tips!
1. Oh, you southerners are so polite! I love it ... most of the time. But not when it comes to breaking the law while driving, just to be nice.
DON'T stop in the middle of the street to wave someone out who was waiting at a stop sign.
DON'T let about 50 cars on 1 side go when you're at a 4-way stop.
Basically, DO follow the laws of the road, even if you think you're being impolite.
True story: if you are waiting to turn onto a road or cross the road, and some "polite" person who is ON said road stops in the middle of the road and waves you to come out, don't do it. It's a trick. You WILL get hit by another car that has not read that person's mind and is actually following the rules of the road. Even better? If you're in a state that gives fault in accidents: you're at fault (of course you are! You should know better!).
2. 4-way stops are hard! False.
Come to a complete stop. If there's no one else at the 4-way stop, you're golden. Go.
If there's only someone directly across from you, and they are also going straight (or they or you are making a right), you're golden. Go.
If there is someone on either side of you, the person who got to the stop sign first gets to go.
Here's an efficiency tip: you don't ALL have to take turns. Just each side of the "cross". If the person to your left was the first person at the 4-way stop, they get to go AND (if they're going straight or turning right), the person directly across from them can go at the same time (if they're going straight or turning right). Same with YOU: when you go, the person directly across from you can go at the same time (if you both are going straight or turning right).
For people making a left turn at a 4-way stop, please come back another time for the advanced lesson.
3. When it rains, it pours, and drivers in South Carolina suddenly have a death wish. A raindrop will not kill you, and it will not harm your car. No need to slam on the brakes at the first drop of rain! If the rain impairs your ability to see the road, turn ON your headlights and turn ON your windshield wipers. Slow down to a manageable speed. But DON'T slam on your brakes when you're in the fast lane (see #5) on I-85.
4. So a raindrop won't kill you, but you know what will? Black ice. Icy or snowy roads are dangerous, so this IS the time to slow down. In New Jersey, our parents take us out to an empty parking lot when it snows so we learn to maneuver a car in the bad conditions. It's good practice, because everything is different on ice. Braking, turning, accelerating (but why? why would you accelerate?) -- everything is different. Try it out in an empty parking lot -- seriously.
5. The fast lane -- that exists in the south, right? I mean... you know there's such a thing? Because I really can't tell if you do. Here's what it means:
On a highway, once you merge (see #6), you're usually in the right-most lane, unless you really did some crazy merging there. This is the exit/entrance lane. This is typically the slowest lane because people are just gaining speed when they enter, or slowing down as they exit. The middle lane is for normal driving. The left lane - "the fast lane" - is for passing. You pass on the left. Always. It's actually a law, friends. As in, you can get a ticket for passing on the right.
5. Merging -- this is where southerners refuse to be polite, to my astonishment. When YOU are entering the highway and trying to merge, YOU have the right of way. Surprised? You shouldn't be. It's because when you're entering, you need to build up the speed, so that you're not a safety hazard to the other cars on the highway.
Here's the catch:
When YOU are driving on the highway, and you're in the right-most lane (the exit/entrance lane), YOU DO NOT have the right of way. This means you must let the mergers in. Again, it's actually a law. A few ways to do this: switch lanes safely - using your blinker and checking your blind spot, so that you are not even in the exit/entrance lane; slow down (without slamming on the brakes!) to allow the merger in front of you; speed up (safely, and in plenty of time) to pass the merger before he/she makes it onto the main part of the highway so that he/she merges behind you.
6. You can't be a real Jersey driver unless you release some aggression while driving. We've got what a friend has dubbed the "Jersey arm" which is when you wave a clenched fist in the general direction of the offending automobile. Then there's my brother's favorite, shouting at the top of your lungs with the windows closed, so that the person may or may not hear you, but they can see your angry face. Or take a lesson from my father and call someone a dope: "Oh! Nice directional, ya dope!" Really, it's all about style. Find what works best for you.

James 1:27

2010-10-28T10:25:00.002-04:00

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."
James 1:27

Widows and orphans.
It seems like everywhere I turn I hear those words. We are to care for the widows and orphans. There is an abundance, at church, of foster children. Most of them have unfit parents, but looking at how hard their life is going to be in the future breaks my heart. Many of them are so young and the full extent of their situation isn't known to them. I have a passion for children, but especially for these children. The children that need so much love and attention.
One thing I know, currently, is that in the future I want to foster/adopt. It will be interesting to see how THAT plays out ;)
I recently heard an interview with Kay Warren, Rick Warren's wife. She was talking about the moment she felt God calling her into a ministry that would nurture and support the widows and orphans around the world. AND She did something. She started an organization within Saddleback Church to support orphans.
So my challenge to you is to do something.
What are you passionate about? What bothers you?
Do something about it.

Check out all of the things Kay is involved in here.

When I Get to Heaven....

2010-10-27T15:28:00.000-04:00

First of all, what a weird picture, right? I mean, when I saw it, I just had to use it because when in the world would you ever think to yourself, "Man, I just wish I had a blurry picture of an angel with humongous wings swinging!"
Anyway, I think about heaven a bunch, and not necessarily in a completely theologically accurate way. Loggins has told me that she thinks she'll be Latina when she gets to heaven, which is a possibility. I'll attend the gospel church service and maybe join the awesome choir since I plan on having a voice like Mandisa.
I will have a lot of stuff to do and a lot of people to talk to when I get to heaven, because basically anytime I've ever read anything in the Bible and been like, "Why did Peter do that?" or "What do you think Jesus wrote on the ground?" my mom's answer was always, "You can ask him when you get to heaven."
But here's the deal:
I think some of those guys will be totally approachable... like the disciples. But... can you imagine trying to talk to David? I mean, he's possibly my favorite guy in the entire Bible, and I actively try to tell people that they're having David moments no-matter-what-they're-going-through. But... I cannot fathom walking up to him and being like, "Hey Dave! So listen... ten years in that cave, right? Pretty tough!"
I mean, the Bible constantly reminds us what ruffians the disciples were, so I imagine James and John to be like actual sons of thunder - you know - like Pigpen and the Tasmanian Devil all wrapped up into one blur of mischief. Nathanael, a man after my own heart, put his foot in his mouth as soon as he even heard of Jesus, so he's probably my go-to-guy when I get to heaven. And Paul had a lot of experience of talking to people who get it wrong all the time, so I think I'll be cool with him. I mean... I think he'll be patient, you know?
But Stephen? oh my gosh.... Ezekial??
Esther might be cool with me... but Job??!!

It's a little intimidating.

Who would be your first person to stop and talk to in heaven, if it worked that way?
(and... it most likely doesn't.)

Your Love is a Metaphor

2010-10-19T17:31:00.000-04:00

Well, just take a minute and enjoy the beauty displayed above and below before I embark on this post.

.....

okay, ready?

So, I have a friend whose love language is coupons. Definitely. And after thinking about it, I've decided that my love language is metaphors. I can't speak without them. I probably sound like a crazy person half the time, but they're the best desciptors (not a word, but it should be)!

I think that's why I love music and lyrics so much. House of Heroes lyrics are ridiculous and intelligent. I'm talking get-out-the-dictionary-and-look-stuff-up smarts. Oh, Sent by Ravens' lyrics speak to my heart. Muse is in another universe (meant in the best way possible).

And then there's Switchfoot.

You know how you hear a song, and you're like, "Wait... how does that person know what I'm going through? Have they been reading my diary?"

I listened to a lot of Switchfoot when I did my big Australia ... trip? adventure? life? several years ago. I accidentally messed up while loading songs on my mp3 player, so the only songs I had were Switchfoot's The Beautiful Letdown and the 40 Acres album by Caedmon's Call. Four months of travel and homesickness ... yeah - they got a lot of play (and some tears, and some dark poetry as I am wont to do).

Jennie and I get on a Switchfoot craze every few... weeks. It happens pretty often. I've only been to one Switchfoot concert, but it quickly cemented my love of the band and the Foreman brothers.

There's the awesome live performance (see them cover Beastie Boys' Sabotage here), there's the dimples (see above and below, please) and then there are the lyrics. What's not to love?

After reading basically everything I can get my hands on regarding the meaning behind the songs on their most recent release, Hello Hurricane, I'm convinced Jon Foreman is 1) a musical genius, and 2) a musical genius.

I love every song on the latest release at different times for different reasons, but for right now, my favorites are Your Love is a Song, and Free. Check 'em out. And read about the meaning of the songs. You'll be blown away.

So the metaphors for God's love in Your Love is a Song are: symphony, melody, song, remedy, strong ... I can't remember if there are others. What would you write?

Catalyst 2010

2010-10-18T09:46:00.001-04:00

I recently attended Catalyst 2010: the tension is good. There were several amazing speakers with pearls of wisdom for the 13,000 eager leaders. Several of the speakers stood out to me and some just went WAY over my head. The intellectual presenters were tough to connect with but I was still able to learn from a few of them.
Daniel Pink, author of Drive, challenged each leader to define themselves in a single sentence. What a challenge! I have been thinking about my sentence, what sentence sums up ME.
How do you sum up your whole self in ONE sentence?
I had a jumping off point, something I have been feeling for the past few years as I have rebuilt from the inside out.
Beautifully Broken.
I knew I wanted to incorporate the idea of brokenness in my sentence.
After much thought, I have come up with:
I am rescued and redeemed from my brokenness by the blood of Jesus.

What is your sentence?

Like Cannons in the Night

2010-10-15T19:53:00.001-04:00

I have had a week. And it's still happening.
So here's what I do when I get completely downtrodden because I am feeling pretty crapped on this week.
I listen to a song that will lift my spirits and remind me of my identity -- that I was created for a purpose other than my pointless job. There are things in this universe and actions that will have lasting, eternal effects and the things I stress me out, or frustrate me don't fall into that category.
And since I've felt ... hmmmm... not sure what, but I've felt something this week, here are the lyrics and video to the song that is lifting me up right now:

Lyrics:
It's falling from the clouds
A strange and lovely sound
I hear it in the thunder and rain
It's ringing in the skies
Like cannons in the night
The music of the universe plays

Singin' You are holy, great and mighty
The moon and the stars declare who You are
I'm so unworthy, but still You love me
Forever my heart will sing of how great You are

Beautiful and free
Song of Galaxies
Reaching far beyond the Milky Way
Lets join in with the sound
C'mon let's sing it loud
As the music of the universe plays

All glory, honor, power is Yours, amen!
All glory, honor, power is Yours, amen!
All glory, honor, power is Yours forever, amen!

Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed:

   Blessed is he who comes,
      the king in God's name!
   All's well in heaven!
      Glory in the high places!

Some Pharisees from the crowd told him, "Teacher, get your disciples under control!"

But he said, "If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise."

Stars in Our Eyes

2010-10-12T11:18:00.000-04:00

I wrote this to Jennie today:

ok. I don't know if I think Roger Federer is stinking hot because I think he's stinking HOT or because he's an awesome tennis player and has a lovely accent and charming personality. Either way: Greek God.

...because yet another beautiful picture came up in my facebook feed. I was watching the US Open a few weeks ago, and the network showed some slow-motion special camera shot thingy to show how Federer never takes his eyes off the ball as he hits it, and basically it ended up looking like a still picture of Federer slowly moving across the screen, his head and eyes never moving. One of the commentators echoed the bursting of my heart by shouting out, "He's a Greek God!"
But the question of beauty (or attraction) coming with fame is not necessarily an original concern. An episode of The Office tackled this same issue with Hilary Swank: beautiful? or beautiful because she's famous?
Let's take a look:

Yeah, I'm gonna go with just plain beautiful.

See Federer in all his glory for yourself:

And that's while he's hitting a tennis ball in an actual match!

Here's what I tend to look like while I'm mid-hit:

(Rafa is amazing, and also a favorite player of mine, but he's no Roger Federer. I definitely, however, have a little bit of Ricky Ricardo syndrome when I listen to Rafa's interviews.)

Cheaters Never Prosper... And Also Don't Get Invited to Play

2010-10-05T10:01:00.000-04:00

When I was younger, I heard my sister refer to me as "the police". This was in reference to playing games. My family loves playing games. Anything that is loud and fun and involves yelling is a perfect game for my family. They really like cards, too, but I'm not so crazy about cards because I don't have a strategy-making mind for that.
But I am severely and stringently opposed to any kind of cheating or "bending of the rules." It's really difficult for me to play with new people, or to play a game that a lot of people don't know, because sometimes the host of the game will be very laid-back and think, "Well, we'll just teach a few of the rules and see how it goes..." or, "Let's just let that rule slide for now because it's too complicated."
That's not how I play.
I like knowing the rules, playing by the rules, and most of all, I like enforcing the rules. Hence, my sister calling me "the police" when we were playing a game. It might have been Taboo, a game that has a rich history amongst my family and friends of causing fights and creating friendships.
So, if you ever play a game with me (and if you know me, you will probably play a game with me, since I love to play games), just, uh, ... keep this in mind. Play by the rules... and no one gets hurt.

Happy Banned Books Week!

2010-10-01T15:12:00.000-04:00

We are nearing the end of Banned Books Week - September 25 to October 2, 2010! To celebrate, I checked out a few lists of banned/challenged books through the years. First is a list of the top banned/challenged books of this decade. And next, a list of banned/challenged classics.

So, I'm not going to go all crazy and "freedom of expression" on everyone in this post, even though I think banning books is ... dumb. But I will say this: I was really surprised by a lot of the books on those lists. I know that books can be banned or challenged for so many different reasons, and it could even come down to one word in the book, but Charlotte's Web? Bridge to Terabithia? Winnie-the-Pooh??
I'm happy to say that my parents never restricted my reading. I read everything I ever wanted to. I read young adult books that had no literary standing at all, but were just about gossip and sex and nothing. I read classics that changed my life. And guess what: the classics are the ones on the lists, but not the dumb young adult stuff that probably flew so below the radar that no one ever took notice of it.
The books on the banned/challenged lists were definitely the most influential books I've read (Rebecca, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Chocolate War, The Kite Runner, The Catcher in the Rye (one of the funniest and best books I've ever read -- over and over) A Prayer for Owen Meany) and I'd go so far as saying they are some of the most influential books of all time. They're not lying when they say that at least 46 of the Radcliffe Publishing Course Top 100 Novels of the 20th Century have been the target of ban attempts.
I feel like that was a list of my favorite books instead of books I've loved that have been challenged.

Take a look at the reasons for the ban/challenge and guess the book. Seriously, try it:

1. Challenged in the Vernon Verona Sherill, NY School District (1980) as a "filthy, trashy novel."

To Kill a Mockingbird! You know, that ol' trashy novel about a girl, her brother and her hero father fighting an ethical fight in a time and place of racial inequality.

2. Removed from the school libraries in Morris, Manitoba (1982) along with two other books because they violate the committee's guidelines covering "excess vulgar language, sexual scenes, things concerning moral issues, excessive violence, and anything dealing with the occult."

Catcher in the Rye! Hmmmmm... perhaps I read a different book. Occult? Holden Caulfield would have had something sarcastic to say about that.

3. Challenged at the Owen, NC High School (1981) because the book is "demoralizing inasmuch as it implies that man is little more than an animal"

Lord of the Flies! Uh, yes, the "implication" that the challenger understood was ... kind of the point.

4. Well, this one kind of gives it away, but:

Challenged as a summer youth program reading assignment in Chattanooga, TN (1989) because "Steinbeck is known to have had an anti business attitude:" In addition, "he was very questionable as to his patriotism"

Of Mice and Men! Let me add that a chapter of the KKK of my very own town challenged this book back in '77, and that's about all the endorsement I need to read a book. Thanks for the recommendation!

Latest update was 2007: Retained in the Olathe, KS Ninth grade curriculum (2007) despite a parent calling the novel a “worthless, profanity-riddled book” which is “derogatory towards African Americans, women, and the developmentally disabled.” This really makes me wonder if the people complaining finished the books. Or... you know... if you don't get it, then read the Cliff's Notes. It might explain to you the history of our country, how people behaved, and literary methods of making a point about the need for change.

5. Burned in Alamagordo, NM (2001) outside Christ Community Church along with other Tolkien novels as satanic.

Lord of the Rings! You know, the satanic version.

Quiz is over. How did you do? Now, go read a book!

A Hike, A Pretty Place and Some Hookers

2010-09-26T16:33:00.001-04:00

I am celebrating a four-day weekend from work with fun activities with friends and family. First on the agenda was a hike up to Pretty Place at Camp Greenville with Loggins.
Loggins and I love a good hike (as does Jennie!). We go out to Paris Mountain a few times a year, at least. And we were looking forward to a great day trip.
After enjoying the beautiful views at Pretty Place, we traveled south a bit to Caesars Head for a hike, and visited the Ranger's Desk/Information Center to find the best hike for us.
What follows is a transcript (as best as I can remember):
Me: We were looking for a trail map?
Ranger: We have this trail map for $2.50.
Me: Okay, well, we'll just look at it then.
My mind: Yeah, lady, I'm not playing $2.50 for a map I'm going to use for an hour.
Ranger: How far and how difficult of a trail are you looking for?
Me: Not far and not difficult.
(I think I am hilarious, as you can see.)
Ranger: There is an overlook at the top of the parking lot.
(She thinks she is hilarious, too, apparently.)
Loggins: Farther than an overlook.
Ranger: Okay, we have a trail here that is a half mile, and that's as short as you're going to get. If you want shorter or less difficult, you really shouldn't be at Caesars Head.
Loggins: Mm-hmm. (pointing at another trail that had some awful name, like Despondent Trail or Woebegone Way or something). Look at that name.
Ranger: YOU DON'T WANT TO DO THAT ONE.
Loggins: I, uh, was just... looking at the name. It's funny.
Me: So, on this short trail, is there anything interesting we can look out for?
Ranger: Okay, you know what? It's just a walk in the woods. You need to get in your car and drive to another park.
My mind: Rude. We have clearly stumbled into the middle of someone's bad day. Clearly.
Me: Huh?
Ranger: Four miles up the road is DuPont State Forest. You get in your car and make a left out of the parking lot. You'll see a sign, and you want to pull into the second parking lot, which is called Hooker Lot.
Loggins: mmmmmmm..... (starting to laugh).
Ranger: From Hooker Lot, you'll make your way to Hooker Trail.
Loggins: (openly laughing).
Me: (refusing to laugh or make eye contact with Loggins)
Ranger: You'll see two waterfalls on that trail: Hooker Falls.
Me: Uh-huh. Yeah, bye.
So I promised Loggins I would not talk about how we went to the scenic overlook and were exhausted by the time we strolled along the wooden walkway to the overlook. And how we decided to take the easy trail at Caesars Head and had to turn around because I thought I was going to have a heart attack. So, yeah, maybe the Ranger was right, but she was still kind of rude.

The Weirdos I Meet

2010-09-23T10:22:00.001-04:00

Spend some time with me. It'll be an experience you never forget. I meet weirdos all the time. I am like a magnet -- they love me.
Most of my friends will tell you that at some point when we hung out together, we were approached by a weirdo, or something really strange happened.
And you know what? Weirdos like to confide in me, too. It usually happens within seconds of them approaching me.
There was the time I was on a date at a live event at Radio City Music Hall, and the woman sitting next to us started telling us about her favorite WWE Wrestler and proceeded to eat our popcorn.
There was the time Loggins and I were in Barnes and Noble and a woman came over to us, giving us advice on a trip that we weren't taking, and when we asked her if she was going somewhere, she said, "No," and looked at us like we were crazy.
And, of course, anytime I go to Smiley's with Jennie something weird happens. One night, a gross man at the bar purposely backed up into Jennie so that he rubbed his behind all up against her.
I take full responsibility for this stuff, because: I am the weirdo magnet.
All of this is an intro to this weird email I got today.

Subject: Greeting my dear.

Greeting my dear,

Complements of the season to you. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to you. My name is Miss Grace and my contact address is XXXXXX
I am a young beautiful girl with full of love and caring also romantic. well I come in contact with your profile today and I loved it, I think we can click together as one body and soul.
Please I will appreciate if you can use my mail address to contact me directly to my mailbox and at the same time I will show you my picture and you also know more about me. Moreover, I want you to know that distance ,race or religion is never a barrier in the course of love.
Thanks for your love, understanding and co-operation. Please I hope favorably to get your reply, contact me with this email address above. I wish you a blissful and a happy moment over there.
Yours sincerely,
Grace..

Uhhhh... [sic] a million times over.

The true story of how Anderson Cooper hit on me (sort of...)

2010-09-22T11:50:00.004-04:00

In Christy's previous blog, you heard mention of an Anderson Cooper encounter at our local hang out, Smiley's.

I will now share the true story of how I was hit on by Anderson Cooper.

Christy and I were minding our own business, listening to great blues music at Smiley's, our favorite hippie bar, when I look to my right and see Anderson Cooper.
Ok, not really Anderson Cooper, but in all seriousness he looked VERY similar to the handsome CNN reporter. As many of my close friends know, I have a deep love/infatuation for Anderson Cooper. After seeing this man, I emphatically tell Christy we are, in fact, sitting next to THE Anderson Cooper. She laughed, looked and agreed that he did look very similar to him. Over the course of the night caught his eye and smiled (several times I am sure). I didn't realize what I had done until he was ACTIVELY trying to listen and comment on the conversation that Christy and I were having. He even leaned over and high fived me at one point. I can't even remember what it was for, but I just knew that he was going to ask for my number by the end of the night. The sad thing is....I probably would have given it to him. I know, I know-- INAPPROPRIATE. I have a thing for older men, what can I say.
Luckily, I started chatting with a much younger handsome man. After the whirlwind conversation with someone more age-appropriate, I realized I had dashed the hopes of one, ANDERSON COOPER. He was gone. So with that I say “Catch you on the flipside, Anderson.“

DISCLAIMER: I am fully aware that Anderson Cooper is in fact gay, but look at those dreamy blue eyes. I will choose to stay in denial about it :)

Smile! It's Smiley's!

2010-09-20T12:11:00.001-04:00

Okay, this is the best. Apparently, I drafted this post last year, and never posted it. So here you go:

Most of the time, Jennie and I spend our 'hang-out night' by sipping wine and watching some preteen romantic comedy on tv. And it's wonderful, seriously. But sometimes, we venture out into the world and head to our favorite hippie bar, Smiley's. A couple of Fridays ago, this is exactly what we did.
Smiley's is one of those places where you just never know what's going to happen or who is going to be there. You could run into an old friend or be surrounded by strangers. You could be the youngest person in the place, or the oldest. It just depends on the night.
The Friday that Jennie and I went, we were definitely in the middle of the age range, which is sometimes a good thing. There was a birthday party in the bar, making things a bit more crowded than usual, but the live music was blaring and the crowd was having a great time.
Before the night ended, Jennie got hit on by Anderson Cooper (well... an older man who closely resembled Anderson Cooper), and a young man who had "red flag" written all over his face. The Anderson Cooper thing is a story in itself, I promise you. I, on the other hand, got hit on by someone's Uncle Paul, who got angry when I wouldn't dance with him and even angrier when I wouldn't hold his hand.
On the way to our cars, I told Jennie my secret.
Me: I have a secret.
Jennie: What?
Me: I really like that Lady Gaga song that goes 'RAH RAH MAMA GAGA ROMA ...."

****
The end. Meanwhile it's no longer a secret that I love that song, and that I love Lady Gaga, but I was definitely in denial for awhile.
Also, "someone's Uncle Paul", who hit on me (angrily, and pulled my hair because I wouldn't dance with him. You guys, the strangest things happen to me. Really), looked EXACTLY like the actor Bruno Kirby from When Harry Met Sally. EXACTLY like him.

Are you using your time wisely?

2010-09-15T14:47:00.002-04:00

Last night at Bible Study, our group was asked: What are things you love and are doing that take away from your time spent building your relationship with God?
I began to think about the things that I do, that I love. I instantly thought, “The things I am doing aren't interfering with my relationship with God. It is the excuses, the “not making time”. The things that I am NOT doing are the barriers that keep my relationship with God from growing.
I am a person with a busy schedule. I feel like the things I invest my time in are important.
My biggest struggle is spending time in the Word. I read a lot of Christian inspiration books, Christian self help books and I listen to a lot of sermons—but actual time in the Word is minimal.
So, How can I increase that?
Get up a little earlier
Go to bed a little later
Keep my Bible with my so that when I have a spare moment I can read
All of those things would give me the “time I don't have” to spend in the Word.

When I break down my day, there are definitely times when I could be reading the Bible, but I am doing something else (random, meaningless meandering). Granted they are not huge stretches of time, but they are there AND they add up.
Who said you can't add hours to the day! :)

A Timeline of Friendship

2010-09-14T09:54:00.002-04:00

Around the same time that I was actively trying to avoid becoming Jennie's friend, I was also actively trying to avoid becoming Loggins' friend. You see, with three of my closest friends - Anjalog, Jennie and Loggins - I pretty much tried to not be their friend. It's just one of my cute little quirks. But we're friends now!
When people ask Loggins and me how we know each other, we always exchange a weird look and stammer out some noises to fill the awkward silence. It's a long story, and not all facts are agreed upon by both parties. I'll explain, with a timeline.

Actual First Meeting:

Loggins has no memory of this, but we were introduced by a red-headed Clack at a church group. Loggins remembers the girl sitting to my left and the girl sitting to my right. In fact, she remembers everyone sitting in the row with me. Except for me.

Fake First Meeting:

I threw a game night party at my house. Loggins was invited (because we'd met before... She thinks I somehow just invited a stranger to my house). We played Taboo and were on opposing teams, but were on the same team when it came to following the rules. Those kids played it all sorts of WRONG. They were subsequently never invited over again.

Next meeting:

I invited Loggins (and Jennie! this is when we were deciding we might be friends) to see Civil Twilight play downtown. At lunch that day, I ran into Loggins at Jason's Deli and informed her of their complimentary ice cream. Friendship cemented.

A Hiccup in the Budding Friendship:

I was downtown one day with another friend, driving down Main Street, when Loggins crossed the street in front of our car. "That's my friend, Loggins," I said, pointing to her. "Are you going to say hi?" asked friend. No. And then, of course, we see her minutes later and end up telling her the story. Word of advice: if you avoid a friend, don't tell them about it later, because you'll hear about it for the rest of your life.

The Traumatic Event that Sealed our Friendship:

Speed dating. Dating is hard. Cramming 25 dates into one night is torture! Nothing can make people realize that they need to surround themselves with safe, good people like meeting crazies in 1-minute intervals.

Pity Party of Two

2010-09-09T17:21:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was our favorite day: Coffee Wednesday.
Jennie and I look forward to it all week long. Sadly, Anjalog couldn't meet us for our weekly ritual, so Jennie and I went alone and decided to throw ourselves our very own pity party. We're pretty good about this, considering how often we see each other (every day) and talk (every day), but some days, we just like to sit and ponder our lives and say to each other:
Something will change, right?
And I look at her like she's crazy, and I say, “Jennie! You're so young!” and she looks at me like I'm crazy and says, “Christy! You're so young!”.
But yesterday it was harder for the two of us to cheer each other up.
                    And then..
                            we had an awesome conversation
                         culminating in an awesome

Jennie-quote

We were talking about dating “bad boys” and being rebellious. Now, Jennie is a middle child, so she wreaked all sorts of havoc as a rebellious kid.

I, on the other hand, am an angel. So I've never dated a bad boy or been rebellious in any way. Perfect child, I tell you! So Jennie said that she thinks that since she's been-there, done-that with the whole dating a bad boy thing, she's over it. And I wondered if maybe it was a cyclical thing. Like... eventually you get desperate enough again that you're like, “well, yeah, my parents will freak and I don't even like him that much, but a date is a date, right?”

Jennie is firm: she knows how bad the bad boy is and she's not going there again. So I confided in her: I'm feeling rebellious.
My evidence, of course, is that I like Damon, the bad vampire brother, and I've found myself rooting for Andy Murray (of all people!) at the US Open (yeah, I know. He's out. Whatev.)
My dear friend Jennie, took all of this in with the grace of a laughing hyena, and through her giggles and chuckles, said to me:

"I'm glad your rebellious stage doesn't affect your actual life."

Thanks, girl.

Letters from Another Time

2010-09-08T11:12:00.000-04:00

This is a letter I wrote to my brother when he went away to college at the University of Michigan (or Michagan, as I wrote it). I totally remember this stationary. I totally remember that when I used this stationary, my handwriting got crazy lopsided. I was nine when I wrote this letter, but by that age, I was already quite a letter-writer. My brother spent one summer while he was in high school at Carnegie Mellon, studying theater (I think). I wrote to him there. A few years ago, he read me some of those letters. They're even better than this one.
When I read this letter, my primary thought was not, "I can't believe I became an grammar nut, based on the atrocities in this letter," or "Wow, I was such a nosy busybody! No wonder my sister kept so many secrets!" (those were secondary thoughts), but was "aw! Letters! Remember them?"
It's a little sad to me that letters have been replaced by emails and texts. Even our communication is rushed! Kids today won't necessarily have a note from the past come back to them one day. And old emails just aren't quite the same.
Anyway, in case you can't read it, here's the transcript of the letter:

Dear Greg,
Hi! How many is 100 / 10000? You don't really have to tell me. But can you divide 100 / 10000? Todays the big day! Michagan against Notre Dame! Do you think Michagan will win? I miss you but I like getting letters from you. It's almost like you in a different world. The train just past. Laura slept over Loryn's house last night right from the football game! Laura didn't have her stuff with her because they decided it right at the football game.
(continued on another page, lost forever).

For the record, My favorite lines (aside from the brilliant opening) are: "I miss you but I like getting letters from you. It's almost like you in a different world. The train just past." I totally know what I was doing there, and I still do it. I was sad and missing my brother, but didn't want him to feel bad, so I was letting him off the hook. Then I was dramatic, as usual. Then I was trying to make him feel like he was there with me: The train just past.

Juggling

2010-09-03T15:18:00.001-04:00

A few things.

First, I was reading old posts yesterday, and as I mournfully told Jennie, I used to be funnier. Well, I'll try to be funny again, but probably not today, which leads me to my second point...

Secondly, yeesh! What in the world?! I feel like I am one of those crazy awesome people who spins plates and I've got like 10 up in the air and I'm supposed to add 2 more. Right now.
I am captain of my tennis league this season, which basically means that I need to piece together puzzles of people who are able to play on a certain day, have a preference between doubles and singles and get decently equal time playing as others. This is hard.
Plus, I have this pesky full-time gig that keeps getting in my way (not complaining! I like having a job!) and we're going to start new processes for the "opportunities" we've been having. "Opportunities" is business-speak for "problems". It's really annoying. Plus, I like to get out and do fun stuff outside of work and tennis once in awhile. PLUS, I also like volunteering.
So, I'm getting it together, right before your very eyes. I like to think I'm an organized person but this is really going to challenge me.

Thirdly! this Bible verse has been stuck in my head. It's a pretty scary verse from Ezekiel where God speaks to Ezekiel. A few months ago, I was all, "Ezekiel, huh? Don't know much about that. I'll read it!" and -- I won't lie (uh, definitely not in a post where I'm quoting the Bible) -- but I didn't finish it. Because it's NUTS. I mean, nuts in a good way, but still: NUTS. Go ahead, read it. We'll chat. IT'S NUTS.
Here you go:
Ezekiel 20:33

"As I live," declares the Lord GOD, "surely with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be king over you. (NASB)

Here's The Message translation:

As sure as I am the living God, says God, the Master, think again! With a mighty show of strength and a terrifying rush of anger, I will be King over you! I'll bring you back from the nations, collect you out of the countries to which you've been scattered, with a mighty show of strength and a terrifying rush of anger. I'll bring you to the desert of nations and haul you into court, where you'll be face-to-face with judgment.

Basically, don't mess with God. The words are terrifying, but I also love it at the same time.

And finally! The juggling picture from above reminds me of a hypnotically cool activity that I just recently heard of. Check it out: hooping.

But Really, How Did You Get this Address?

2010-09-02T14:20:00.002-04:00

I just received an email from Loggins, who is visiting Mickey Mouse, and it begins with this sentence:

so let's talk about a few things:
I'm too old for this.

She then goes on to describe how a water park made her consider getting an artificial hip and that her favorite pool was the "quiet" pool. Loggins is in touch with her inner senior citizen, which is kind of appropriate, considering she's in Florida right now (yes, stereotypes. Sue me).
The reason I bring this up (other than "so let's talk about a few things: I'm too old for this," is an awesome quote) is because I have no idea what is going on but I am getting crazy amounts of spam mail for old people.
Here's a list of some of the spam I've acquired over the past week. These are the return addresses of the phishers, not even the subject lines:
• SinglesOver50 (not I, friend. Not I.)
• DateSinglesOver50 (no thank you?)
• BestPlasticSurgeonMatcher (Oh, I see. It ties in with my dating.)
• HearingAid.Deals (in case I want my over-50-date to hear me...)
•UnitedHealthcare (This may or may not be for old people. If not, wrong place, wrong time, spammer.)

I'm kind of wondering how in the world they got my email address and how they would think I'm over 50, single, hard of hearing, in need of a good plastic surgeon, and possibly in bad health. It's quite a combination.

This is the Day

2010-08-31T10:36:00.001-04:00

Psalm 118:24

This is the day that Lord has made; let us rejoice in be glad in it!

I woke up with this verse in my heart and head this morning. What a gift! I ran through about a million scenarios of the good things that can happen today, but of course, the fact is that every day is from God, and my response to it may always be rejoicing, whether it turns out good or bad.

The Message translation seems to put even more emphasis on our response to God's work each day:

This is God's work.
We rub our eyes—we can hardly believe it!
This is the very day God acted—
let's celebrate and be festive!

So, celebrate and be festive! God authored this day!
Note: For a beautiful picture of the Twelve Apostles rock formation on The Great Ocean Road, check out Peter Lik's photographs, one of which I originally had posted here before I decided to not be illegal. I visited his galleries in every city that I could.

The New Orleans that I Know

2010-08-26T12:22:00.000-04:00

It's the five year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and I would love to take this opportunity to talk about New Orleans. I had the pleasure of visiting New Orleans for my 30th birthday this year. It was my first visit, so I don't know the area pre-Katrina, but I loved so much about that city. I would go back in a heartbeat. The food is amazing, the architecture is beautiful, the people are friendly and are a huge family ... and the music! The music....
I don't think I can even explain what the music is like.
I'll try to describe it with stories.

Once we found this amazing group, we made sure to find them every day. They were so talented and were a joy to listen to. It was a cacophony that just made beautiful music. That's what New Orleans was: a triumphant blast of different kinds of music, coming together to form a roaring melody.

One night, while my brother and I were eating an early dinner on the balcony of a restaurant, a saxophone player swooned with music on the street below. A few buildings away, a couple came out on their balcony to dance. When the music and dancing ended, the crowd on the street (and in balconies lined along the street) applauded both the musician and the romantic couple.

I loved this group, who we caught a couple of times on the best street for music: Frenchmen Street. One of them is playing the washboard. Yes.
In a bar on Frenchmen Street, open mic night means "bring your instrument, jump up on stage with everyone else, and pour out your heart!" I felt like I was in a movie when the band (sometimes with up to 10 people in it!) would begin to play and people would jump up from their chairs and begin to swing dance. Don't know how to swing dance? Then stop by Frenchmen Street earlier in the night for free lessons at one of the bars.
Of course, my brother and I took the opportunity to visit the 9th ward, where some of the worst flooding happened. It's been five years and progress has surely been made, but it was still devastating to see the damage to people's homes and schools. I can't even imagine what it must have been like.
Here are some other great memories from the incredible city.
If you have the opportunity, visit New Orleans. If you love music, you must.

FEAR.

2010-08-25T13:44:00.006-04:00

When you ask someone what they are most afraid of, you will hear answers like spiders, snakes, sharks, the dark, water, heights etc. Most of the fears that people speak about are tangible. People aren't always quick to talk about the circumstantial fears.
When I think about my fears, my mind wanders to the unknown elements of my life. There are definitely tangible things that I don't like, but those are not what I most fear.
I am more afraid of the What if's?

What if I never get married?
What if I never have children?
What if I die young?
What if people don't like me?
What if I don't make a difference?
What if I don't fulfill my purpose?

Fear is a natural response to the unknown. So how do we deal with the fear?
Simple: ACT. The only way to get over any fear is to ACT. Some of my fears may never be resolved. Some of the What if's may never be fulfilled. ACT in spite of the fear. ACT as the spirit leads. ACT to make a difference.
ACT.

Music for Right Now

2010-08-24T09:55:00.000-04:00

I know that Jennie and I have both mentioned our love for all things musical. I have been practically obsessed with some songs or bands lately, so I figured I'd share.

1. I don't actually own this band's CD, but I neeeed to get it. You can listen to all songs on the CD at their web site. The name of the band is The CO, and they are kind of amazing. They just recently posted a song that they're "working on" and I've probably listened to it like 50 times. That's in progress?! Yeah, I need to get this CD. Also, they need to come here.

2. I've used the term "musical genius" to describe artists before (specifically, the-artist-formerly-and-currently-but-not-at-points-in-between-known-as-Prince... and if you'd like to debate this, email me and give me time to compile the evidence. I had an unhealthy obsession with Prince in middle and high school, and... whenever I listen to any of his music), but John Mark McMillan is a Musical Genius. Sample lyrics:
A thousand pairs of fiery eyes
Burn like a serpent down the highway 5
As the long amber tail to Los Angeles unwinds
Um, that's traffic. TRAFFIC. He blogs about his writing process, here (actually - there are like 4 posts on how he writes, but this one is my favorite). Read it.

3. Brooke Fraser is super cool, and, to be honest, there are 2 of her songs that I'm overplaying like crazy. First is the C.S. Lewis Song. Next, is Albertine. Please see the lyrics for these songs. They are so powerful. She's such a talented songwriter.
Albertine Lyrics:
    Rwanda
     Now that I have seen, I am responsible
     Faith without deeds is dead

4. Last by not least! House of Heroes. They used to come to The Channel a lot, but ... I'm thinking that after their latest release, it might be awhile before we see them again. You see... this album is amazing. This video is amazing. Their singing is amazing. If you ever get a chance to see them live, do it because their voices will blow you away.

NOTE: do I even need to mention Sent by Ravens? I leave them off this list because I can't just always include my favorite band of all time, who plays my favorite song of all time. Yeah, so that's why I don't mention them. At all. Sent by Ravens. Not mentioning.

(That's Not What the Mute Button is For...)

2010-08-19T16:54:00.002-04:00

Way back when, Jennie wrote a post on Potty Etiquette, posing the question: Why in the world are people trying to talk to each other through the stalls of a public restroom?

Well, I've encountered something else here at work. A lot of people use the public restroom at work as a kind of "private phone call" area. Even stranger, I have now encountered (twice! two times! not just once! two different people!) people using the phone while they are in the stall.
I walk into the bathroom, and I hear a voice float up from a stall (sometimes, I don't even hear the voice until I'm in my stall). At some point, this person decides that maybe they shouldn't be on the phone while someone else is using the bathroom. So they try to get off the phone.
The best part? One time, the person tried to get off the phone without letting the other person know they had been in the bathroom the whole time! The other time, the person flat-out said (to her daughter. Yeah, I listened in. Of course I did!), "So, anyway, guess where I am? Yep, so I should go."
Which leads me to assume: The cellphone users thought it was okay for their friends/daughters to hear them urinate, but they realized they needed to get off the phone when there was someone else peeing? Where does this rationalization come from?
To all public-restroom-cellphone-users-while-you-pee:
Look, I don't care what you're doing in the privacy of your bathroom at home, but please
                          please
                                                PLEASE
                        don't bring your weirdo habit to work.
Thanks,

Change for CHANGE

2010-08-18T13:56:00.004-04:00

I wasn't the only one to go on a missions trip this summer.
My sister Amber went on a 10 day trip to Ethiopia to work with an organization called “Change for Change.” I didn't know much about the organization until Amber came back from her trip, but I was floored by the story of how Change for Change began.

A young Ethiopian woman would pass young poverty-stricken boys living under a bridge everyday. She wanted to help them, so she began saving spare change to feed and cloth the young boys. Over time, this small act of kindness turned into a non-profit organization that helped provide living arrangements for all of the homeless boys.
Amber was able to see where the boys would be living and meet all of them. I know it was an amazing experience for her to meet and spend time with the boys. Beza International supports this ministry and the organization has ongoing financial needs to support the 30 young boys they are housing.

If you would like to help, donations can be sent to:
The Beza Fund
2801 Wade Hampton Blvd. #170
Taylors, SC 29687

Memo Line: Change Ministry

Start saving your change today and make a difference in these kid's lives.

The Change for Change House

Trouble with a Capital F, That Stands for Faith

2010-08-16T14:48:00.001-04:00

You know how when you accept Christ into your heart, every problem in your life just disappears? Your financial problems are gone, you come up against absolutely no obstacles, your purpose in life just shines like an illuminated sign in the night...
.... You know?
Oh... No?
That's not what happens? Hmmmm... that's not really what I signed up for...
This has been a burden on my heart for awhile, for a lot of different reasons, not the least of which is that a struggle with God seems to be the norm lately.
I can't do this topic justice because I'm just not as gifted with words as others are. I can hug, but I cannot speak these words with the honesty and grace they require. Chad Norris recently gave an amazing sermon at church on facing your Goliaths. Check it out here. It's amazing and it speaks to me. Preview: How come some people walk on the water that others drown in?

Contemplation

2010-08-11T10:08:00.002-04:00

A couple weeks ago, I went on a missions trip to Eleuthera, Bahamas. It was so different than I thought it was going to be. First, it was a LOT of work—which I was surprised by but also happy about. I taught 2 of the 4 days at Vacaction Bible School. When I say taught, I mean we created the lessons from scratch. We didn't use a pre-packaged VBS lesson. I did many things that were out of my comfort zone. I have never really taught Biblical concepts to children or adults for that matter. I think my fears and insecurities were more with the adults hearing my lesson than the kids. Kids are sweet, forgiving, comforting and understanding. Adults don't always have those qualities that help build a person up. Much to my surprise, teaching was fun. I had a blast doing skits and teaching kids about deeper biblical concepts. The highlight of my week was when a little boy, Malik, came up to me after one of my skits (which I was very nervous about) and said “Good play, Good play! And he patted me on the back.” I wouldn't trade that moment for anything.
I also did more physical labor than I have ever done in my life. I really miss being in Eleuthera. Although I don't miss the heat, I miss waking up each day with specific purpose and never knowing what will happen next. I know that God is active in my life everyday, I think I was just more aware of it and searching for it more when I was in a different country doing work for the kingdom. I have been toying with missions, in my mind, for a while. I left saying, “I will know after this trip whether I am being called to missions or not.” To be quite honest, I still don't know. I do know that God has a purpose for my life. He has something in store. I don't quite know what it is yet, but I am searching—searching hard. I know one thing, I am ready and willing for whatever God asks me to do.
It is difficult to see Christ in everything when I am back to the normal routine of life. It was such an encouragement to feel that way EVERYDAY for a week. So....in this stage of my life, I will work to see God in EVERYTHING, regardless of where I am or what I am doing.

The Problem with Proxy Pejoritives

2010-08-10T12:00:00.001-04:00

I've been thinking about this for awhile, and I just came across this article, so I'm just going to go ahead and tackle the idea, head-on.
I'm not a fan of curse words. Cusses, foul language, potty mouth... whatever you want to call it, it just bothers me.
A few years ago, a co-worker asked me if I would let my (imaginary) kids say "Dang" as a substitute curse word. My reply: "No, but not for the reason you'd think."
1. My kids won't be saying "Dang" because that's just not how you speak when you're from New Jersey.
2. In my opinion, 'substitute curse words' are just as bad as the actual word.
Now I have some really mixed feelings/strange ideas about this, so bear with me. I don't completely understand why some words are deemed as bad words in our language. We are giving strange power to words, but that's just the way it is. Words hold power. Some are negative and some are positive. Some are bad and some are good. I don't get it, but it is what it is.
My first problem with offensive language is that it just makes the user seem uneducated (to me). If some find the words offensive, there must be another way to express the statement. If the user can't think of another way, that's ... their problem (and all the people who find the words offensive).
My problem with substitutes for a specific word, like saying "Darn!" "Dang!" "Freaking!", is that the substitute has now gained the exact power of the original word. So, when a person stubs their toe, I would say it's just as bad to say "Frack!" as it is to use the other word. I know, I know. A lot of people would disagree. But, in my opinion the user's meaning behind the word remains the same. By the way, I am totally a hypocrite - I say "Darn!" "Shoot!" "Freaking!" and "Jeez!" all the time. I'm actually trying to cut down on "Freaking!" because I heard my nephew say it, and it is not cute. Which leads me to my next point...
Little kids, toddlers, etc. using offensive language is gross. That's probably what bothers me most of all. And when my nephew said "Freaking" it was not cool.
So I'm working on it. But I'm really curious - what do you think? I'm still working through how I feel about it, and I really want to hear others' thoughts on the topic. Tell me what you think about bad words, substitutes for bad words, and how freedom of speech fits into all of this.
On a side note: We are dumber than ever. According to this article the average North American adult knows only 30,000 to 60,000 words, out of a potential "working vocabulary" of 700,000. Oh, and bling has been added to the dictionary. Hoorah. How this all fits together is still a muddled mess in my mind, but there's a connection.

Return of the Beautiful People

2010-08-09T15:20:00.002-04:00

It happened again. I saw the beautiful couple. You know, from this post. The most beautiful couple I've ever seen, and possibly the most beautiful couple in the world.
And of course they look completely different and totally cutting-edge from the last time I saw them, so I didn't recognize them until Katie pointed them out to me.
And of course since they are both incredibly beautiful inside and out, they recognized me and greeted me like a long-lost friend.
Now, I will say that I often call people "the most beautiful (man/woman/child/couple/drummer/guitarist) in the world" But, in my defense (which - I hate those words, and maybe in the future I'll do a post on why I hate them so much), I truly am believing that they are, at that time. Isn't beauty a weird thing? It's like a gift that we can bestow on people/things, but it only means something to me. It doesn't mean the same thing to you. Weird.
Speaking of beautiful, here's a beautiful song, by a beautiful band, with a bassist whom I've definitely referred to as a beautiful man: Something Beautiful.

More Fun with Jennie

2010-08-05T16:37:00.000-04:00

As we do, Jennie and I spent our lunch break at Barnes & Nobles. We don't usually buy, unless there's some crazy sale, as we spend many lunch breaks at the library. We were scouring the sale items when Jennie threw this book at me:

The Unofficial Guide to Dating Again. 75% Off.

Our conversation:

Me: Dating Again? I need the first book, not the Again book.

Jennie: I know. Those people are so selfish.

By the way, I looked this book up on amazon to see what it's really about. Sounds like a hoot!

Touching on such issues as STDs, AIDS, date rape, sexual harassment, lifestyle changes, social changes, and self-esteem, along with concerns about stepfamilies, children, and mature dating, this book will provide unbiased, street-smart information to those facing this adventure once again.

Oh, you've convinced me! Dating Again sounds wonderful!

Update on Being the "Fun" Aunt

2010-08-04T11:04:00.001-04:00

So, remember how I said I like to let my niece and nephew have fun? Well, here's an update. When we were on vacation 2 weeks ago, the kiddies were having a blast jumping on the beds in my room. So I went over and took some pictures, because they were just
                                  jumping!
               and giggling!
     and shouting!
             and having
                                so
                                      much
                                                 fun
Not even five minutes after I left them there, there was a blood-curdling shriek and then crying from my darling niece.
Of course, she had gotten hurt.

I've learned my lesson.

Surprise, surprise!

2010-08-03T09:11:00.000-04:00

What a surprise! When I checked my email this morning, I found out that a short story I submitted for publication has been chosen! And it's already up on the site! Check out the literary blog Einstein's Pocket Watch for my story Fly Fishing Lessons.
It's the first short story I wrote, years ago, and it's the first one to get published (which is kind of crazy, since another short story, Nosepicker, was chosen to be published in another literary magazine months ago, but won't be published until the fall -- a more normal time line for these things, I'm learning.)
I'm kind of loving that there's no wait with this one. Yay! I'm very excited.

The Nosiest People of All

2010-07-29T11:16:00.001-04:00

Just yesterday, I was talking with Anjajog about how I felt very nosy. You see, I know a person who's not technically my actual friend (see? this is why facebook is bad for me), and he just broke up with his girlfriend and I want to know why. So can I ask? I'm just being nosy. And I don't necessarily want to open up lines of communication. I just want the hot gossip. So... really I'd like someone else to ask. Any takers? No? Anjajog said I could ask, which is definitely the opposite advice I will receive from everyone else, I'm pretty sure.
Anyway, I thought I was nosy, and then... THEN, Nosy Personified came crashing into my place last night in the form of 2 rugrats, ages 6 and 4. My gosh, little ones are sooo nosy!

"Aunt Christy, who are those people in that picture? Is that me? Is that you? Who's that girl?"

"Aunt Christy, I just used your toilet in your bathroom!"
"Aunt Christy, do you have something longer than this?" (holding up some fabric that I have no idea where they got it.)
Pointing to a picture of the Indian girl I sponsor through Compassion - "Aunt Christy, is that your kid?" That one is hilarious to me on so many levels. Why, yes, child, I have an Indian daughter whom you've never met, and she's hidden away right now.
"Aunt Christy, look at those puppies! Puppies!! AWWWW, PUPPIES!" Me - Please let that man walk his dogs in peace.
"Aunt Christy, a KITTY CAT!" Me - That's not my house, please step away from that house!
"Aunt Christy, why don't you have a downstairs?" Me - someone else lives downstairs. Them - "And he's a police officer!" Me- yes.
"Aunt Christy, where is your downstairs?" Me - someone else lives there. Them - "A police officer!" Me - yes.

"Aunt Christy, do you wish you had a downstairs?"

You get the picture.
Meanwhile - how cute are they?! So cute!

What Would I Do?

2010-07-28T11:26:00.001-04:00

I am obsessed with Dateline, Primetime, 48 Hours, 20/20... you name it. If there's a real-life murder mystery being covered, I'm on it (just ask me about Florida vs. Wade, which ate up my entire tv time on vacation. ASK ME).
Sometimes, though, those shows are not focused on a murder mystery, but they're uncovering some human weakness and they are totally speaking to me. Totally. So, last night's episode of What Would You Do? by John Quinones, coupled with this article, really made me think.
The Good Samaritan, a story in the Bible, appeals to all of humankind. Will you lend a hand when someone needs it?
On What Would You Do? they showed a variety of different situations, like ... Would You Endorse a Product That You Know Didn't Work, Just to Get Money and Appear on TV? Would You Help a 15-Year-Old Child Bride Get Away From the People Forcing Her to Marry? (that one was crazy. Crazy! I am in awe of the people that stepped in). But the one that was really difficult for me was: Would You Help Stop, or Even Say Anything to Punks That Are Beating Up A Stranger on the Side of the Street (in Newark, NJ, of all places, not that it matters).
Here's the thing: I don't know that I would have. It's so clear when you're watching it, that someone has to help. It's devastating. So many people just walked by. Some called 911, which might have been my course of action, had I been there. But there were a few who stopped the 3 punks, including a 5 foot, 4 inch fiery woman who looked like she weighed maybe 90 lbs. dripping wet. She was awesome. I want to be that woman. I want to throw aside fears of weapons and embarrassment to help someone in need.
And you know what? In the article referenced above, there was clearly no danger involved in reaching out to the hurting girl ... but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have done that either.
Anyway, I'm pretty disappointed with myself after this realization. I think I'm even just too self-involved to notice when people need help. But I'm going to keep my eyes open, because we are all humans, brothers and sisters on this earth. What is this life worth if I'm not helping others? That's truth.
One last thing - how awesome is that painting? I love it!

Stinky!

2010-07-27T09:08:00.001-04:00

Don't you just hate it when people bring stinky food to work? And then they don't close the cover enough, so the stink seeps out and gets all caught in the air? And then, the person keeps opening the drawer where they keep their lunch, so the stink keeps escaping? AND THEN, that person keeps saying, "What is that smell? Who brought stinky food?!"
And then that person realizes it is she.
So yeah, I brought stinky food (tuna fish -- I'm sorry! I love it!) and then I put it in an inadequate container with an ill-fitting lid, and then I opened the drawer about 50 times this morning and kept trying to accuse people around me of creating the stink.
Just... don't ask why I keep my food in a drawer. It's just better that way.

Oh, the fun we had

2010-07-26T09:27:00.001-04:00

So I got back from the beach, and what a time it was! Those of you who know me, or ever met me, or have read this blog, know that I wasn't necessarily looking forward to this vacation.
But it was really amazing this year. We made sure we did a bunch of things other than just sit on the beach. Like... well, I met a really handsome guy and we went jet-skiing! That's a picture of us!
Just kidding.
My family did go jet-skiing, but here's what actually happened:
• My mom and I went over the 20-minute time limit and ended up giving my sister less time on the jet ski than we intended.
• Dylan wanted OFF the jet-ski; Cassidy did not want to get off.
• My dad, brother and Dylan fell off the jet-ski while trying to retrieve my father's hat from the bay.
• The hat, and my dad's glasses are gone. Forever.
We also went to the USS North Carolina battleship which was pretty amazing, and we explored Wilmington, which was a really cute town. My brother came at the last minute, so that made the trip even better.
My favorite memories are playing a bocce ball/golf beach game while the sunset and holding Cassidy, all wrapped up in her beach towel, and singing to her on the beach.
It was a great trip, and a great time with the family.

And I'm off!

2010-07-23T13:52:00.004-04:00

In less than 24 hours, I will be crossing off one of my goals from my "Bucket List."
I will be embarking on a journey to a far away land.....
Well actually I will be going down to a little island in the Bahamas called Eleuthera.
A team of 9 (including me) will be conducting Vacation Bible School for the kids, as well as working on some construction projects.
I have a list of things I want to do before I die, "My Bucket List", and going on a missions trip was one of them. I guess I never felt ready, but an opportunity presented itself...so I dove in head first! No time like the present. I am starting to realize that if you keep waiting for "the right time" you will be waiting forever.
So tomorrow at 2 am, I will be heading out on my first missions trip. I am nervous and excited, but I know that BIG things are happening for the Kingdom. I am just excited to be a part of it. I can't wait to report back and let you know all the details of the trip.

Thanks for all your prayers!

Dreams...they are interesting.

2010-07-21T20:09:00.003-04:00

I dream every night. I have very vivid, memorable dreams. In some cases, months later a dream will happen...in my real life. I claim deja-vu and when I search my mind for how a certain event occurred twice, I realize that I dreamed the event months earlier.

Dreams are interesting to me. I have had dreams that make me avoid someone for several months or feel differently towards a certain individual. I can't figure out why, I guess because they are so realistic...it messes with my mind.

Most of my dreams are ordinary, everyday happenings and not crazy, adventurous dreams. Sometimes I wish I had whimsical, unrealistic dreams. That is the point, right? to experience Dream land.

What is the craziest or most realistic dream you have every had?

I think I am a mean girl.

2010-07-19T09:31:00.002-04:00

I think I'm a Mean Girl.
I am an avoider. When I see someone I know in public, I avoid them. I am not proud of this quality, but it is like a reflex. I don't even realize I am doing it until I've turned my face or walked the other way, hoping the person didn't see me. I also “act like” I didn't see the person. Usually, the person acts like they didn't see me either, so I don't feel so bad when that happens. Although, you can act like you didn't see the person, but sometimes they will NOT allow you to “not see” them. The non-avoider will usually make a big ruckus, call out your name or run over to you. I am actually kind of okay with this, because if the person really wants to talk to me...I will talk to them. I am not much of a small talker. I would rather do the half-wave in acknowledgement that I know the person, but you both recognize that you have nothing of any worth to talk about with each other. That is the IDEAL situation for me.
I need to add a disclaimer, the avoiding USUALLY happens with acquaintances. Although I caught myself doing it to a friend the other day. I know...I know...Mean girl.
This is the constant battle within myself: Am I mean girl or not?

5 Non-Romantic Reasons I Want to Get Married

2010-07-15T15:03:00.002-04:00

Sure, I'm all about the romance and bells of true love and all that, but there are just normal times in my boring life that I let out an exasperated, "This would be so much easier if I were married!"
So here goes:
1. I really really really really want a dog.
And yeah, I know I don't have to be married to have a dog, but I have to be married to have a dog that doesn't die of neglect or starvation. Basically, I'm selfish, and I don't spend a lot of time at home. So that's where the husband comes in.
2. I need someone to pick up my certified mail.
Certified mail is the biggest pain the butt, right? First of all, who in the world is home when the mail person comes? Secondly, did you know the post office's hours are like 10-10:15 am, and then 3pm-3:02, and then 3:43-4:04, and they act like how is it possible that you can't get there? And, my post office is like a 45 minute drive away, which is untrue, but it does take me that long when I factor in getting lost, which I must.
3. It would be nice to cook chicken sometime.
This is almost a reason. The real reason is that it's annoying to cook for one person. But let me tell you a little ditty about cooking chicken. I made chicken last night, and I'm pretty sure it had already gone bad. Of course, I ate it. Well, like 20 minutes later, I'm thinking "What is that horrid, putrid smell?" It was the package from the chicken. In the trash. The fumes! Now, I don't cook that often, and I certainly don't cook chicken that often, but what in the world?! You have to immediately take the trash out after cooking chicken? That's too high maintenance for me.
4. That time that it snows.
This was more of an issue in New Jersey, but snow happens here, too. And when it does, me and all the husbands are out there bright and early, sweeping snow off of our cars and clearing the way for our vehicles. Me and all the husbands. (yes, yes, grammar.. but it sounds better this way).
5. So that people will stop saying dumb stuff.
See Jennie's post. If you don't understand why those are dumb, please contact me on a good day. If you currently say those things to people, please stop. In fact, just don't comment on people's relationship status. I mean, why would you?

So I'm sure you're reading this, thinking, "ummm... you want a maid, not a husband, I'm pretty sure." Yeah, possibly. But ... husbands do stuff for you, right? And wives do stuff for them? Give and take? I've heard this is true.

Christy will be famous someday...

2010-07-14T13:59:00.003-04:00

Christy has doubts about her amazing writing talent, but I am here to tell all of you that she WILL be a famous writer someday. AND....I plan on riding her coattail all the way to the TOP. I have already made plans to be her stylist/administrative assistant when this occurs.
Christy has one of the most creative minds of anyone I know. The way her mind works in conjuring up story lines and adding imagery to the story is amazing.
She gives life to her characters, characters with unique personalities. Characters you can relate too.
She often comes into work saying "I thought of a story last night that I am going to write." She proceeds to explain an authentic, carefully detailed storyline. I often wonder if my mouth is hanging open, because I can't fathom coming up with something like that in a YEAR, let alone a night.
This simple fact is why Christy blogs more than I do. I love blogging--I just have trouble coming up with things to talk about.
So Cheers to Christy! Talented, Smart and the only reason this blog is still alive!

A Terrible (but fun!) Aunt

2010-07-13T13:50:00.001-04:00

I took my 4-year-old niece into a bar yesterday. During happy hour.
I also gave her a sip of my coffee when she was like 2 years old.
Wait, wait, wait... lemme back up.
I have a 4-year-old niece who is a princess, and a 6-year-old nephew who is a boy genius/soccer star. My relationship with my niece and nephew is so very different from the relationship I had with my own aunts and uncles. I see them all the time and I live only about a 3 minute drive from them. My own aunts and uncles lived at least 1 1/2 hours from us, and a few were out of state and we'd only see them maybe once a year. Since I see my niece and nephew so much, it's normal for me to discipline them or tell them to behave. But I'm the aunt, not the mommy, so I kind of want to be the cool Aunt Christy. For example, my parents - who watch my niece and nephew a few days a week - have a lot of rules at their house. No jumping on the beds, no being a room that you're not supposed to be in, etc. etc. Well, I don't have those rules. You kids want to jump on my bed? Have at it!
The other day I walked upstairs to see the kids in my parents house and opened a bedroom door. My nephew said, "Oh! It's only Aunt Christy. I don't have to hide Samson (his lovey)." Apparently, Grandma would have yelled at my nephew for going into the other room and getting Samson out. But not Aunt Christy! I'll save my yelling for something else.
Here's my philosophy: I will let them get away with the little things, so that when they become crazy teenagers, they come to me with their dumb, rebellious ideas, or runaway to my house. They can come to me and say, "Aunt Christy, take me to get a tattoo, and don't tell Mom." And I'll be able to calmly say, "Let's talk about why this is a bad idea," and hopefully they'll listen to me.
So all of that to say, yesterday my niece had to go potty, and when she has to go potty, she has to go now. So we ran into the bar next to where we were, walked through the smokers and drinkers and I brought her to their potty. You're welcome, fine boozing establishment! I hope they understand.

The Land of the Beautiful People

2010-07-12T11:45:00.001-04:00

Previously on I Heart Banana Copenhagen: Jennie wrote the Best. Post. Ever.
I love that Jennie drops by like once a month with a post and it'll be this phenomenal wisdom or something crazy funny.

So Jennie and I know these people who are literally the most beautiful people I've ever seen. And they're married to each other. Of course.
So we'll call them Pretty and Handsome, even though those names are barely suitable to describe their beauty. I will try to paint you a picture. Pretty is always cutting-edge with her style, in addition to having classic good looks. Short hair is in style? Well, Pretty already has the haircut that no one even knows about yet. It's funky and flattering, and her picture will be the one people bring to their hair stylist in like 6 months, when people start catching on with the style. Handsome is... just really handsome. He looks like a movie star. Like a movie star walking around with normal people. And it's quite difficult to keep your heart rate at a normal level when he walks by (if you're into that kind of thing... you know... good looks).
So when Pretty and Handsome walk around together, they cause quite a stir. First, because they really look like they might be famous, or should be famous. Crowds part for them. Everyone stares. And they don't even notice, because it's just part of their normal lives. It's funny because they're also kind and funny people, and they don't even notice the stares or smiles.
It's like those episodes of 30 Rock where Tina Fey's character is dating Jon Hamm, and everyone gives him special treatment because he's so good looking. It's just like that.

So here's what I think: I think that they live in a completely different world than I do. I mean, sure, in that respect we all live in different worlds from each other, but ... really ... they live in a different world. They live in a world where people notice you all the time and seek you out to talk to you and giggle at your stories and stare into your eyes. (Yes, I'm speaking from experience. Yes, I once had an entire (flirty) conversation with Handsome without realizing who he was or that he was married because that's how good looking they are: you don't even remember that you KNOW THEM). So... I can't think of any cute or catchy names for this syndrome or the strange world they live in. My sister calls things Pretty Girl Syndrome when people get stuff for free because they're good-looking, but this is a little different because these people don't even realize they're different. Suggestions for names? Go.

10 things EVERY single girl will hear.....over the course of their singlehood.

2010-07-09T18:43:00.002-04:00

1.“When are you going to get married?”
Now married people ask this, I HOPE, not even thinking about what exactly they are asking.

2.“You should foster or adopt kids.”
Because that is what I want to do as a single 20-something woman. Adopt a kid. Alone.

3.“Where are all the single men?”
My response: Married.

4. “I met my husband at the Grocery Store, you should go shopping...”
Oh my gosh. I should go shopping, I NEVER thought of that before.
You lie. That doesn't happen. I only meet 70 yr old retired men or 16 yr old cashiers that ask me why I need so much food since I am clearly single.

5.“You are single for a reason. It will happen in God's timing”
This may be true, but NO single girl wants to hear this.

6.“Marriage isn't all it's cracked up to be.”

7.“He has braces, bad skin, a lisp, and red hair...but he is SOO sweet. You should go out with him.”
Most single girls have had heard SOME variation of this statement.

8.“Have you tried online dating? My friends-brothers-college roomate's-sister met her husband online.”

9.“You are better off single. Why would you want an annoying man around?”

AND DRUMROLL Please......

10. “It happens when you least expect it.”
I have been “least expecting it” for years!

The Voice New Testament: Book Review

2010-07-07T11:02:00.007-04:00

I received a complimentary copy of The Voice New Testament from Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for an unbiased review.
As with The Message, The Voice is a terrific supplement to a more traditional translation of the Bible. It has a clearer interpretation of the scriptures in modern language, and I enjoyed reading passages side-by-side in The Voice and in my New American Standard translation.
The Voice refers to Jesus as "The Liberating King" which tickled me every time I read it. It really invokes a poetic image of Jesus that I never got from my other translations. In passages with a lot of dialogue between several people, The Voice prints the dialogue in a play format, which makes it really easy to follow and a quick read. There is also some commentary within the Chapters, with boxed-in text providing some facts about the author or the time period, or asking provoking questions of the reader, drawing us in. There were times I wasn't quite sure how I felt about the boxed-in information -- sometimes it was an interruption to what I was reading, but the informational boxes are easy enough to ignore and go back to at a later time.
Overall, I really enjoyed The Voice New Testament, and I highly recommend it as a supplemental study.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Two Wild and Crazy Gals!

2010-07-07T10:10:00.004-04:00

So I spent my long weekend in Birmingham, Alabama with my mother.
First things first: If you've met my mother, you've already had a deep conversation about your dreams or your future with her, she's put you on her prayer list and she prays fervently for you daily, and you are welcome to our family holiday celebrations and on our family vacations. But she may or may not get your name right.
My mom's passion is her family - none of us have ever doubted that. When we were little she told us that her dream was that we would all end up living in the same place, even on the same road. And that almost happened, so that's pretty good! She's never met a stranger, which is both fun and embarrassing. Fun because you just never know what kind of connection you're going to have with the guy selling you tickets to the caverns (we're all from New Jersey! His uncle lied to him about walking to NYC!) and embarrassing because ... yeah... we don't really need to know the connection we have with the guy selling us tickets to the caverns...
She has a great sense of humor, which in our family is a necessity, as we like to pick on each other. I, on the other hand, can only take about a minute of it before I burst into tears, so you already know how the family vacation goes. And speaking of a sense of humor, she has an incredibly infectious laugh, which I think got passed down to the females in our family. I remember once we went to a movie and the theater was so crowded that my brother and I had to sit on one side of the packed theater while the rest of the family sat on the other side. We heard my mother's laugh ring out over the crowd during all of the funny parts (and probably some of the non-funny parts, too)! This was literally 20 years ago, and my brother and I still talk about it.

"Remember that time we heard Mom across the entire movie theater?!"

So basically what I'm saying is, if you get the chance to play charades with my mother, do not pass it up. It will be the funniest thing you ever do. I guarantee it.
P.S. - it's cool, it's cool. My Mom doesn't know how to log in to leave a comment on this site.

Holiday Weekend!

2010-07-02T11:35:00.004-04:00

It's a 3-day weekend! Woo hoo!! Jennie and I separately had the same bright idea, that 3-day weekends don't come around so often so we need to take advantage of them. So we'll be enjoying a wonderful time with our families and I cannot wait. I think we'll even be getting out of work a little early to get started!
I think one of my favorite fourth of July memories was the year after I graduated college. I was still living in New Jersey, and my friend and college roommate, Trish, was living with me for the summer. She had gotten some sort of invitation from an old college professor (a dance instructor - yes, she took a dance class in college for fun.... and I did, too!) that his dance troupe was performing in NYC at one of the piers. So on the morning of the fourth, we drove to Staten Island and took the ferry across to Manhattan.
We wandered around the city, which was strangely empty for the holiday. We sat in Starbucks and read the paper, sipping our frozen drinks. We ran in a fountain. I remember it was crazy hot and we were desperately trying to stay cool. Finally, we went to the show and watched these amazing dancers perform, right at the end of one of the piers in downtown New York. Then we walked around a little bit more. And Then.... Then, we realized it was indeed the fourth of July of we were in New York City, so we got the heck out of there before the crowds came in for the fireworks that night.
I think we spent a quite evening in little ol' Budd Lake, New Jersey that night. I'm not even sure where we watched the fireworks. It was a great time with a wonderful friend.

I Think It All Started For Me...

2010-06-28T13:12:00.005-04:00

I can't speak for my friends, but I've been having a time, lately. The time is best described as frustration with God, a waiting period that feels as though it's never-ending. I feel that I am unable to enjoy the present and I'm constantly looking ahead to find my purpose or fulfill some longing.
And I'm working on it.
But my relationship with God has definitely been affected (not necessarily in a bad way), but I have been working through a lot of things with my Savior, and not always feeling as though it's been a two-way conversation. But the thing is, there are some things that I know are true, based on past experiences and also “because the Bible tells me so”. So here are some words I hold steadfastly to:
God is good.
When I seek him, I'll find him.
And then Romans 8:26-28:

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

Oh, that text has been really guiding me lately.
Also, I am all about Psalm 23, since we had an awesome sermon on it at church yesterday. It's chock full o'goodness. I could probably focus on a different word each day and get so much from that passage. (Right now, I'm all about "He restores my soul.")
Anyway, this all comes up because Mr. John Mark McMillan, master singer and songwriter, wrote this post on his blog, which is … well, just what I needed to hear.
So one day, I'll have the rest of my story: I think it all started for me ….

The Cool - & Fabricated - Lives of Others

2010-06-25T14:58:00.006-04:00

First, I was going to write about the giant moth that has moved in with me and is sharing my living space. I finally got up the nerve to try to shoo it out, and it attacked me and is currently hiding somewhere in my house plotting its revenge (and adapting to the roach spray that I sprayed on it. I'm picturing fangs and a wing-span of a large bird the next time I see it). But the thing is, that story is basically all there it to it, and it's kind of typical of what goes on in my household, anyway.
So here's another story:
I once tweeted (twittered? twitted?): "be forewarned: if I follow you on twitter and have never met you in real life, I make up FANTASTIC details about your life."
It's true. But don't worry; it's all good stuff. Usually. I very much like making up what other people's lives are like. Isn't that second nature? Isn't that why we "people watch" and even have a such thing as Facebook?
I've often thought to myself, "hey Beautiful, we should just get rid of Facebook. It's dumb." (oh yes, yes, the royal "we" happens when I talk to myself.) And it is, but my next thought is "But Gorgeous! If we get rid of Facebook, then how will we know when that girl we weren't friends with in high school is going to her PTA meetings?" And I'm not even being sarcastic in that thought. It's kind of cool to see what other people are doing with their lives.
For example, I'm currently **friends** with a bunch of kids that I wasn't friends with in high school. One of them has some sort of job where he travels all over the world, and is based in Australia. So he's always posting stuff like, "Who is in Barcelona? Let's hang out tonight!" And there's this other **friend** who is in a cool indie band in Portland, Maine and is always writing about making his album and playing shows. These are things I never could have guessed about these guys when we were in high school! It's just super cool to see how everyone's life has turned out.
So, while I know these tidbits about them, there are so many blanks to fill in, and fill them in I do! (hey - I'm a writer. I have to use my imagination!)
What do you imagine about people?

We've won an award!

2010-06-22T16:08:00.005-04:00

It is an HONOR to receive the "I love this Blog" award from Cyndi Clack.
Cyndi has a special place in both of our hearts. She is a very special lady with God-given, amazing talents. Cyndi is a great mother and friend. We are so privileged to have her in our lives. Thanks for the award Cyndi!

I, Jennie, will be writing on behalf of the both of us (Jennie and Christy). So here we go.
10 things we love:

1. We love friends. Friends are very important to us and we love spending time (and stories) with each one of them.
2. We love family. Family is very important to both of us as well. We have many stories, that we love to share, about each of our family...and their quirks.
3. We love missions. Christy and I both have a heart for missions. Spreading God's love to people across the world is something we both want to participate in.
4. We love reading. At any given time, we will both be reading SEVERAL books spanning from Classic literature to Young Adult to Self-help books. Reading is our passion.
5. We love to travel. Most of our travels happen inside of our minds, but we both have BIG expectations/plans for retirement. We try to plan mini-trips along the way :)
6. We love music. Luckily we have the same taste in music, so we can jam out together like Nobody's business. “RA-RA-RAMAMA, want your bad romance!” (that is for you Christy)
7. We love ice cream. Unfortunately due to my recent diet change, I haven't been able to partake in ice cream like I used to. I STILL love it though!
8. We love children. Christy has a BEAUTIFUL Niece and a VERY HANDSOME nephew. I am pretty sure I love them as much as she does, but SINCE she is their family.... Seriously though, We both love children and hope to have one or two...someday!
9. We love Sent by Ravens. They are a band (so they probably technically should be under music), but they deserve a specific shout out. Sent by Ravens is an amazing band, dedicated to sharing God's word with their fans. They are a group of fantastic men with amazing talent.
10. We love Chocolate. BUT then who doesn't.

10 blogs that we love:

1.NIE NIE Dialogues. A lovely lady and plane-crash survivor, Stephanie Nielson gives us insight into her daily struggles. She has 4 BEAUTIFUL children. It is a pleasure to see a glimpse into her love of life and family. She takes beautiful photographs, documents heart wrenching, as well as light-hearted moments in her daily life. She is an inspiration to both of us.
2.Jamie, the very worst missionary. God is an important part of our lives, so it is great to hear a realistic, refreshing look at the world we live in today. Jamie is so hilarious, we often find ourselves LOLing...in the office.
3.Baked Perfection. Risa has a passion for baking and I can definitely relate to that. I have made several of the recipes from her posts and they are delicious. Although only I read this blog, Christy has enjoyed several of the confections I have made from this site.
4.Stuff Christians Like. Jon Acuff, author and comedian, has a blog-turned-book called Stuff Christians Like. The blog is a rip off of the book “Stuff White people like” and Jon is all to quick to admit it! Jon tell hilarious stories about common Christianisms. Check it out, you'll laugh for days.
5.Oh! Sweet Pig!-Lori Ford, a loyal reader of I heart Banana Copenhagen, has started her own blog! She is a great story teller and has great insight on life.
6.The Beautiful Mess. I just recently found this blog. Candice is a photographer that lives in North Carolina. She posts highlights of her photographs for the month and also posts recent work in her albums. We have enjoyed looking at her BEAUTIFUL photographs!
7.Grit and Glory. Alece is an inspiring woman. I would love to be more like here. She has gone through a lot recently and still finds God in everything.
8.The Sphors are Multiplying. Heather shares intimate details of what it is like to lose a child and life afterwards. She breaks up the heaviness with lighthearted stories about her new baby, Annie, and her husband Mike.
9.Donald Miller IS-Donald Miller is an accomplished author. He is personally one of my favorites. He is working on a variety of projects in his spare time (although I doubt he has much). He documents all of it on his blog.
10.Brandon McDaniel . Brandon McDaniel was an amazing young man. He was ready and willing to serve the Lord in whatever ways possible. His life was short, but his memory will last for a long time. He touched many people and we are able to get a small insight into his thoughts, prayers and experiences.

Now recipients of the “I love your blog,” pass this on to your favorites:

1st--Thank the person who awarded you the “I love this blog”
2nd--Write 10 things you love.
3rd--Call out 10 blogs you love and why. Let them know so they can pass it on.

Competing Posts

2010-06-21T13:49:00.004-04:00

So basically, my friend is a liar. Just kidding!
But my friend told her version of the story on her blog (which is awesome), and here's my version (aka Truth).
Picture this: Hollywood* and I are minding our own awesome business, walking on Main Street in our beautiful downtown. Now, I don't know what happened. What happened? I don't know.
There used to be a curfew so the punks and hooligans would be all snug as bugs in rugs, tucked in bed by 10 pm. Alas, last Saturday night, it was about 10:15 or so and there were children - children! - acting crazy on the streets of our downtown. And while I enjoy exaggerating and romanticizing (see: later in this post), this is Truth: the kids were as young as 11 years old. Packed. On. The. Sidewalks.
So the streets were electric. There was this whole antsy feeling in the air, like something was going to happen. And it did.
All of a sudden, a ruckus, a rumble, a rough and tumble-roughhousing (yes, I referred to it as all of those that night. And was disappointed when Hollywood kept calling it a fight.) broke out. Kids started running and shouting, then people were pulling youngsters out of the middle of the crowd and walking away. The police car that was right there? Empty. Finally, the police came running up, and two more followed on these sad bicycles with an even sadder siren, and the arrested like 2 people. Which - who knows how they decided who to arrest? Anyway, it was over in a matter of minutes, mostly before the police even showed up to the scene.
The news van was there, but they didn't want my story, which definitely figured more like this in my head:
I tried to bond with some guy about how kids today need boundaries and curfews and such, but then Hollywood pulled me away, because frankly, I was getting a little too excited about the rumble.
So. That's that. And I don't know maybe the police forgot there was a curfew, or if there's somehow not a curfew anymore, but I'm wondering exactly what they're waiting for before this "curfew" we have is enforced. Because it needs to be. I mean: those kids need their sleep, if nothing else!
Five points for each word that proves I'm an old lady in this post.
*Names have been changed to protect the liars.