Cranberries!

Banana bread and coffee are being consumed. Delicious. Listening to the Cranberries and Jimmy Eat World. oh yea, happy new year! And i had just gotten used to writing "2010" and saying "twenty-ten" not "oh-ten". Now i have to start all over? le sigh.

Favorite lesson learned in 2010: Yielding to HIM brings both peace and joy. It is most rewarding in every regard. I could name off a handful of examples, but the point here is HE is good in all HE does. I am such a control freak, so when i don't know what's going on or if i can't see what's up ahead i get antsy and frustrated. HE knows that. HE wants that. If i profess to love HIM then my response to "go" or "say" or "do" this or that should be "yes!" without hesitation or a second look back. To love HIM means to heed to HIS voice, however quiet a whisper it may be. I always start off thinking that my plans are great and they will work out just right and things will be smooth and lovely because i am HIS. But that is only true if i am listening and obeying HIM. There is this great quote from Elisabeth Elliot that says, "I know no prayer other than 'Thy will be done'." How awesome would it be if we could live out that prayer...second by second, in the big things and the little things. Yielding my will to HIS will was probably one of the more painful yet rewarding experiences i have gone through. EMBRACE THE RELEASE.

I still have my Christmas lights up. Are there Christmas decoration fairies who will come and haunt me since it's now January? I put up a tapestry in my living room. It's big -- maybe 9'x4'? My mom had it in her apartment when she was in college. She used as a room divider, i use it as wall art. It's lovely. I like people. They're fun and different and come in so many varieties; kind of like jelly beans. I have this habit of inserting random CD's of my roommates into the stereo. Currently Playing: Broken Social Scene. I like it.

~Me

Christmas Miracles Are Present

Went to sleep Christmas eve night after a lovely read and woke up the next morning to the little sister busting in my room at 8 am screaming at my very asleep self "IT'S SNOWING!!" We live in Mississippi, so as you can imagine this is a once in a lifetime event. It was definitely one of HIS quite humorous acts -- seeing as how it was about 40 degrees when it was snowing and it stuck. Christmas miracle.
My cousins come in tomorrow. I am bursting with excitement. We're in the process of trying to figure out what to do, however. It is Winter in Mississippi...there isn't much activity or scenery. IDEAS needed! We are doing a photo shoot though, Jordan and Rose graduate in May and have been begging to do one for when they come down. This will be an adventure for sure.

I'm in the process of writing an essay for admittance to nursing school. It is a pain. There must be an easier way. I think i may have to spill all of my nursing ambitions, hopes, and aspirations and then add some humor. They will be reading a lot of essays, might as well have a laugh in the midst of it all, yea? This is like my life or death paper, which is somewhat frightening, but i'm not panicking. Too badly. It's due before the 15th. Pressure is on. Where's my coffee?

~Me

Does Curiosity Only Kill The Cat?

I'm having "i feel lonely" symptoms. I don't know where they arose from but alas they are readily present. Maybe it's the time of the year that does this to me? But i think it may be just reality setting in. 2 months. No regrets. Just anxious?

I went to a lovely wedding over the weekend. It was fairytale-esque. I have always loved going to weddings. I love seeing the couple meet eyes, hearing their vows, and seeing the beautiful dresses and bouquets. But this time it wasn't as magical. This time it made me sad more than anything. The "what if" questions of every kind flooded my head and resulted in me laying awake in bed that night unable to sleep. Will i be that old lady with frizzy hair, a turtle named Charles and the author of 7,000 books? Will i ever find that one guy who i dare give my heart to? Will i be satisfied if i don't? Perhaps the answer can only be found in the waiting.
...However long that may be.

~ME

Have An Italian Christmas......!

Only eight days till Christmas and i have half my shopping done. I think this may count as a Christmas miracle. I'm usually much more behind than this. It's sneaky, i tell you. Why does Christmas always sneak up? Every Year! I need to find a way to reprogram my brain so that it thinks that buying any Christmas present in December is unlawful. Or maybe i should make one of those paper strands, starting on labor day and ending on Thanksgiving day. That might send more panic through me, making me more efficient. But probably not. I am most certainly doomed. Does aging help with this problem??

Random tidbit for the day: Mrs. Georgie (and her delicious banana bread) is awesome.

Bronchitis is almost gone. I think that me coughing up one of my lungs yesterday really improved my breathing. Somehow. One of these Decembers i WON'T get sick, WON'T go to the doctor, and WON'T make a trip to the ER, and WILL be able to breathe properly. Lifelong goal. I know...impressive, right?

I leave you with this impressively horrible and amazing video. I am left speechless.

~ME

Who Knows. . . .

Christmas lights on the highway at night are amazing. For instance, this one house was semi-decked out, just the usual icicle lights and such. BUT they had pine trees next to there house and put santa in his sleigh and four reindeer 50 feet up. It was huge and it was amazing. probably also one of those 'you had to have been there' sights. Also, it is quite dangerous to put out amazing, bright and shiny christmas lights along the highway. Because you want to look and go 'ooooh pretty!' and then you remember that you're on the highway. Dilemma.

My exciting life on tuesday consisted of taking my last final exam. whoop! It was short essay kind of deal...i think i did alright. Then i went to go get my hair trimmed. Finally! I'm trying to grow it out and i knew if i went back too soon that i'd be like 'what the heck, just chop it short!' And so i waited.....FIVE months. That, my friends, is a long time. woah. My hair is happier now. Then i went home, cleaned dishes, washed clothes and then my mother called to ask if i had gone to the doctor.
Uhhh whoops? I forgot that i had been coughing up a lung ALL day....! Yes, i went. I have bronchitis. Again. My lungs have had a hard life. So then i headed to the pharmacy to get my drugs. The pharmacist called me over, he's an old family friend, to inform that this one drug might make me a bit shaky. I said ok. He asked how i was, being sick and all. I replied, 'yea it's just bronchitis.' l-o-l.
Then i did work stuffs, went home and watched the sound of music. love. that. movie.

Also, i had my first cup of coffee tonight since sunday. SUNDAY! I figured i didn't need to mega dehydrate myself while being sickly and all. But now my body is like "caffeine!!" Which is probably the reason this is the most is utterly ridiculous post in every regard. Is there a point, you ask? That would be nice, but alas the answer is a resounding no.

Bible study ended. yes, i'm repeating myself, but don't worry, i'm going places. So, it ended and i'm left with the constant hovering question 'what do i teach on next semester??!' And i panic. But only briefly. And then HE is like 'hey, do this!' I rejoiced. HE knows what's good. So, in the process of studying and preparing for next semester i'm reading like nine kajillion books. Deep thinking books at that. It's fun. I am excited. You should be too.



You can blame the caffeine.






~ME

Week 50

I'm sipping coffee in my new fuzzy socks and it is delightful.

My bible study for this semester rounded up on Thursday. My friend and i dressed as nuns. Praise habit -- habit of praise. Nuns. It was more than incredible. It always fascinates me that HE knows what needs to be spoken, to whom, through whom and when. I mean, HE is God, so it makes sense, it just never fails to amaze me.

Isaiah 61:1 -- "The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners."

Isaiah 58:11-12 -- "The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings."



School is wrapping up and the town is feeling more and more vacant by the day. It's kind of nice actually...just quieter than what i'm used to?
I want to go skiing. Re-e-e-a-a-lly badly. Will you take me? I'll let you borrow my fuzzy socks....! Kthanks.

~Me

I Wonder If There Is Gravity In Heaven. . . .

I tend to walk into walls a lot. It's true. Laugh at me if you will, but i do. If you haven't noticed this it is probably due to the fact that i've learned to play it off or i simply, and literally, role off the wall. The reason for this is i tend to not always look where i'm going. No, not the whole stare at the ground deal, but more like a stare at something to my left or talk to someone on my right while walking. Has this lesson been learned? Sadly it has not. I continue to "flounce" around and bounce off of walls, doorways and cabinets left and right. I have mad skills....or do i? I wonder, is it because i am possibly ADD and so get bored with my direct line of vision or do i just have REALLY bad balance?

Maybe both. I'm leaning more towards bad balance though.

So, puzzle me this...why do we perpetually "flounce" about on this narrow road that we are trying to stay on? Do we see something shiny and lose our focus or trip over our own feet because we weren't paying attention to the road HE's laid in front of us? It is fascinating that our slight shift in focus can make us turn completely away from our original path that we had set out on. What have we seen that we think is better? Whom have we listened to that has competed with HIS whispers? As of yet i haven't found anyone, anything or any place that can compare to HIM and HIS peaceful presence, but my eyes still wander. Not literally, that would be creepy. What does it take for us to realize that HE satisfies and HE completes us? Maybe we will get it if we listen close to those whispers and try to read HIS lips....which suggests we are gazing UP!

"Let Me See Your Smiling Faces!"

In case you missed me....i'm back.
My computer had a tragic collision with another object last week and so i have been mooching off my roommate's laptop. She gets fixed soon, my laptop that is.

I've been sick all week. I was a good student and went to my horrid 8 o'clock class, only to regret it a few hours later. Hot soup and warm pj pants are my friends. I thought it was bronchitis, but never went to the doc to see. I'm not a fan of going to the doc or getting shots. It is all so very dreary and no fun. I would much rather be stubborn and watch my Disney movies. Wise? Maybe not. Preferred? Absolutely.

To combat the amount of ice cream i have managed to consume over the course of this last month, a friend of mine and i have started yoga. We intersperse it with some pilates too. They are both challenging but in different respects, so switching it up is fun and sometimes difficult. My arms hurt. So bad. *insert ridiculous amount of question marks* We did multiple workouts, all of which concentrated on different areas, but my arms were like "HI!! over here! we want to get toned!!" Pain = good.....right? Also, the yoga instructor is somewhat amazing...in an 'oh my goodness she's insane' kind of way. See also: post title.

One of the biggest highlights of my week was finding out for sure that my cousins are coming after Christmas. SO. RIDICULOUSLY. EXCITED. If you know me or how enthusiastic i can get over things then you may be able to picture my reaction. If not, just ask G.C. ha It's going to be the best week....ever. uh-huh.


~ME