Can I Get an Amen?!

I'm kind of going through my own personal revival right now. I have been reading books that cause me to think about having purpose and how God orchestrates events, and it gives me comfort. It feels good to remember that everything has a purpose and that, while I may not have any idea about what is going on, God does. There are so many things I m trying to figure out about my life and my future and the message I keep hearing about that is a relationship with God is the answer. Or at least, when my focus is growing closer to God everything else falls into perspective. It reminds me of a couple of songs...

The hymn "Seek Ye First"
"Seek ye first the kingdom of God
And His righteousness
And all these things shall be added unto you..."

And "The Answer" by Shane & Shane
"The answer is to love You and be loved by You alone"

Growing Wings To Fly

This is how it used to be...

This is how it is now...

Birdie Breakthroughs

Lately my parakeet, Kiwi, has become much more social. He can fly because we haven't kept his wings clipped. For awhile we were worried that meant he would forever be flying away from us. There was a point when he seemed to realize that he was independent. I-N-D-E-P-E-N-D-E-N-T. He could fly back to his cage without needing a helping hand from his human flock. Then I began to entice him to my hand with millet, his extra special birdie treat. We call it his crack. Shortly after that he began to fly to my hand when it was a very short distance from the cage whether it had a treat or not. Then the fun really started. He began to try to fly to us when we were sitting at the kitchen table. The only problem was he didn't seem to have much control of his speed or direction. He would go zooming past our heads and then go back to his cage, a much safer alternative to a potentially moving human target. After much practice he is now able to land on my head, shoulder, and even hand... while I'm holding a phone in it. Oh, I forgot to mention glasses. He has a strange attraction to our faces and glasses. It is a little inconvenient when you have a bird perched on your face chewing on the rim of your glasses. Still, I'm pleased it appears he is coming to accept the fact that he is in our flock. Just a moment ago he was sitting on my shoulder making noises that sounded a little like the aliens in the movie Signs. Next maybe he will learn to talk to us!

To be a therapist...

...Or not to be. That is the question.

I need a few more

I recently found a list of life goals that I wrote over 5 years ago. It's one of those lists of all the things you want to do or see before you die. It had 34 items on it and I had accomplished 3 of them before I lost it. Now I can cross out a few more. I think I've done 6 or 7 total. I started adding to the list again. I kind of want to have a nice round number like 50. I'm not really sure why. I'm up to 47. Some of them I'm not particularly attached to like eating escargot or spending over a hundred dollars on a meal. Those would be cool, but if I came to the end of my life and hadn't done those things I wouldn't be too disappointed. Some examples that I would really like to do are to see the Northern Lights in person, visit a tulip field in the Netherlands, learn to play the mandolin, and see all 50 states (I've seen about 15 already). I was wondering if anyone out there in the blogosphere had any suggestions to help me finish up my list. I'm curious about what other people would like to do in their lifetime.

Pharisee in Disciples Clothing

Jesus and the pharisees butted heads all the time. The pharisees were the guys who were supposed to know what was up. They were supposed to be the experts and Jesus was constantly telling them that they didn't have it right. At all. That worries me because I identify with their desire to follow the rules. I'm constantly trying to figure out if I'm doing things right. I follow Jesus but sometimes I feel like he would be talking to me the same way he talked to the pharisees. "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." (Hosea 6:6) Sometimes I forget that it's about developing and maintaining a relationship instead of doing everything exactly the way it's "supposed" to be done. I think Jesus wants me to lighten up.

Squinty Business

Last night at trivia I was one of a two man team, the smallest I've ever been a part of. It was my friend, Matt, and I competing as Squinty Business. We won the first round then earned fewer and fewer points as the rounds continued. It came down the final question which is worth 15 points and is always about Jack Daniel's. The question was, "How many days does the mellowing process last?" I guessed 7 days and we turned in our answer sheet, not expecting much. Then it was announced: we tied for first place! A chugging contest would decide who would win the $25 gift certificate. Matt knew what he had to do (and that I had no chance of winning a chugging contest). He drank as fast as he could and.... WE WON! That was the first time any of my friends or I had won in over a month. Sweet, sweet victory.

Babies!

I went to my first baby shower yesterday. I wasn't nervous about what the games would be like or all the pastel colors because I knew it was going to be co-ed. At one point I did realize that the guys were all in the kitchen and the women were all in the livingroom. That seemed a little silly to me. The only game we played was making names out of the couple's last name. Some of the ones I came up with were Ira Les, Greg Star, and Lego. I don't think they're going with any of my suggestions.

I feel like I'm growing up

Then the time came when the risk it took
To remain tight in a bud was more painful
Than the risk it took to blossom.
~Anais Nin

Knots

1) My dear friend from high school, Laurel, just got married this past weekend. It was a lovely wedding and we danced the night away to a lot of oldies and swing music. Yay for not caring what you look like while you dance!

2) My back and shoulders have been killing me. I feel like I could get hour long massages for the next month and maybe be okay.

Choice

Recently I have found myself in situations in which it would be very easy to be negative. For example, driving home from work, stuck in traffic when it's 96 degrees outside and my air conditioner is broken. It would be very easy for me to start grumbling about how these people in Sacramento are crazy drivers and how traffic sucks and my car is on it's last legs. Instead I decided to pump up the oldies and sing along. It was so refreshing to make the choice to have a positive attitude about my situation. So often there is nothing we can do about where we find ourselves except how we will react. I would much rather make the choice to be a happy person. This may seem obvious to some, but I find that I often have to make a conscientious choice about it during the mundane, everyday moments. Another choice I made recently was that haircut I mentioned in my previous post. Here is a picture:

Betty Crocker knows where it's at, but I don't

Tonight I spent some quality time with some lady friends of mine. We decided to bake some yummy treats for ourselves. Now, I used to cook all of the time. I worked in a camp kitchen for 2 summers baking 30 loaves of bread at a time. I know my way around the kitchen. At least I used to. Now all I have is frozen food and veggies that spoil before I can eat them. Back to this evening... One of my friends (who shall remain nameless) excitedly told us that she figured out what a wire rack she had was actually used for. She called it a warming tray when in fact it is a cooling wrack. The exact opposite! Needless to say, it has been difficult for me to find time to cook and apparently some of my friends are having the same issues. The night ended with some delicious chocolate chip cookies so overall I would say it was a success.

All Off

I love old movies and one of my favorites is Roman Holiday. In it Audrey Hepburn plays a princess who wants to take a break from her duties and be a regular everyday girl. She takes some time for herself and does some wonderfully entertaining things. One of the first things she does is get her hair cut. She sits down in the chair and says, "All off." It is a change that is shocking but beautiful, and done for herself alone.

Yesterday I decided that I wanted a dramatic hair cut. I didn't tell anyone about it. It was a decision I made all on my own without looking for anyone's input or affirmation. It felt fabulous! Who knew a secret haircut could be so liberating? I guess Audrey Hepburn did.

Psych of Personality 101

I took a test recently and I think I'm an INFJ. Only about one percent of the population is
Introverted
iNtuitive
Feeling
Judging.
One description that I found particularily interesting said that INFJ's are "intense and tightly wound." Yep, that's me!

Everday Normal Girl

I'm just a regular everyday normal girl.

I live in an apartment with my twin.
In an arm wrestling match with a girl I might win.
The car that I drive is 9 years old.
It's a nice blue color, but the mirrors are gold.

If you have a pet parakeet put your hands up.

If you want to see an everday normal guy go here. But let me first warn you that there is some bad language and a few crude parts. Still, I can't help liking it for the irony.

A lot has been happening

Ali and I finally got our dining set from IKEA. Of course, getting furniture from IKEA means you have to put it together yourself. So that's what we did. I call this "The Evolution of the Chair." But before that...

I spent a day in the mountains courtesy of my dad, a great mountain man (beard and all). We fished and I shot a rifle for the first time. Only two fish were caught and they were both released. Mine was a nice 14 inch German Brown Trout. But before that...

Heather and Danny got married! It was a lovely wedding and we all looked pretty good in our tiffany blue and pearls. But before that...


















Heather had a super fun Bachelorette weekend in Napa. Not too many of the girls were actually interested in tasting the wine, but we did taste a few exceptional Moscatos. This is at Mondavi's, the last one of the trip.



I have been doing so many great things and spending time with my wonderful friends, but work has been very stressful and I've been doing a lot of introspection. Those last two things combined mean I am daily fighting a melancholy that makes me not much fun to be around. Maybe I hide it well, but if you think of it please send some prayers or pleasant thoughts my way. I am very thankful for all the people that love me enough to listen to my whining, and if you haven't had the opportunity to do that yet, just give me a call.

Unsolved Mystery

Who can guess what I'm drinking and whether or not I liked it? If you guess correctly, I'll buy you a drink of whatever color you like.

Midwest in Photos

Not long ago I went on a trip to visit my family in Michigan. I also went to Chicago overnight with little Ali. It was great fun. So here's a quick update in pictures.

I went wine tasting there! Who knew you could do that? I am sitting with my grandma having lunch at Tabor Winery, the most popular one in Michigan.

Then we went to Chicago. Almost every way you looked there was a beautiful skyline. This is the view from our hotel.

We had to make a stop at the Art Institute of Chicago to see their world class collection of Impressionist and Post Impressionist art. The one above is "Poppy Field" by Monet.

But of course, the best part was the family. These are almost all of my Michigan cousins.

On a lighter note...

Literally. I have new boyfriend and he is as light as a feather (pun very much intended). Kiwi actually kind of likes me now! He even gave me a little kiss... on the lips!

The Rack

I'm not talking about the discount clothing store. No, the rack I'm talking about is the device used for torture mainly in the Middle Ages. Basically this mechanism was used to pull on a person's arms and legs to stretch or dislocate them. According to Wikipedia, it could go further than that: "Eventually, if the application of the rack is continued, the victim's limbs are ripped right off." I feel a little bit like I'm on a metaphysical rack. I don't think I'm going to lose a limb from it, but I do feel like I'm being pulled in two different directions.