Maine Pictures

Micki came to pick me up

A bar in the Old Port area

Peak's Island

Work in Progress

Last night, I had a blast at a Rockstar Party! The fun part was not so much the party as it was getting ready for the party and taking pictures with my friends.

Today I stayed in my pajamas until 5pm. I (partially) cleaned my room, worked out, and listened to another awful football game on the radio.

I ended my day with a trip to T.J. Maxx and here's what we have so far:

It could be better, but it's more than fine for now.

All I Have to Say is. .

I am so glad it's Friday!

I have been having a very hard time focusing today. I am so antsy and distracted.

I have some fun weekend plans and I expect I'll find out Sunday or Monday if the Texan and I will go out again . . you know, not that I'm thinking about it or anything. I'll be completely honest with you by saying that I'm having a tough time trusting the Lord with it. I want him to call that bad. And I have no reason to think he won't other than GOD MIGHT STOP HIM. And I'm having a hard time not asking for what I want instead of what God wants, even though I know that ultimately that's what I want, too . . because hurting? it's not my idea of a good time.

Update: I just talked to my co-worker about the above paragraph.

Me: "I've been having anxiety in the mornings, but it pretty much goes away after lunch. I'm a freak."

Co-worker: "You're better than I am. I'm an all-day-er."

Pudding from the Bottoms

Four years ago, on a trip to the Deep South (Dothan, Alabama), I had several new experiences, one of which I was sure I would never have again. My friend, 'Alabama', took me to "the Bottoms", a not-so-nice neighborhood across town, for some delicious soul food. Everything I ate was fantastic (turnip greens, grits, fried chicken), but one thing stuck out the most. Banana pudding. Her dad insisted I try it. I honestly expected to find a Snack Pack poured into a bowl, but what I got was something very different. One of the best desserts I've ever tasted! Since that day, I have tried banana pudding several times at various restaurants, but nothing has ever come close to what I had in the Bottoms. Alabama just moved here a couple weeks ago, and when I went over for dinner last night, I was surprised to find that very same recipe for banana pudding was what she served for dessert! Warm banana pudding with wafers and whipped cream. It was just as delicious as I remember it being four years ago. Thanks Alabama! I was so blessed!

Baby Steps

I can't handle the boringness of my apartment. When I moved out here in May of last year, it didn't make sense to bring furniture. I would be living with my cousin for six weeks, and after that, who knew where I would move and how much room there would be. Besides, I didn't love the stuff I had anyway so buying new things would be fun.

When I moved into the apartment, I was thankful I didn't have much. The place was fully furnished albeit with ugly mismatched stuff. All I needed was a bed, a dresser, and a bedside table.

With girls moving in and out over the past year and a half, ugly things have gone and slightly better furniture has come. But it's still sparse. And it's so sparse that I am embarrassed to invite anyone over to see it. Who wants to hang out in a boring space? I've been telling myself to hang in there. This is just a season and soon enough I will have a place to decorate. It just doesn't make sense to invest in a temporary place.

But lately I've gotten quite fed up. I don't want to wait any longer! And although I don't have the funds necessary to really do what I'd like, I can still do small things here and there.

So I went to IKEA for the first time on Sunday. It's not Ethan Allen by any means, but there are some cute things. Here's one thing I came home with:

I realize it looks silly here, but I rotated the picture so you could see how it will look in my entry way. I put it together last night, and it looks nice. It's IKEA, but it's nice. The wood is heavy and solid. The shelves certainly won't dip if place something heavy on them. I like.

I also purchased two rugs. One for the entryway and one for the living room. I'm not ecstatic about them, but they are loads better than what we had.

Baby steps to a cuter apartment. Baby steps to a cuter apartment.

Life Lately

New Hampshire. I haven't even told you about it yet. It was wonderful. I've been wanting to post some pictures but they don't come close to doing it justice. BF and I, when choosing between Boston and the foliage of New Hampshire, chose the Shire. I didn't know if I would ever be there in the middle of October again, and I wanted to see the trees in all their glory. We drove up to Lake Winnipesaukee and the cute little town of Wolfeboro. There we took plenty of pictures, had a delicious lunch of clam chowder and penne pasta in pesto sauce, and popped into a few shops along the main road. Although I was only with BF for a little over a day, we managed to also fit in a game of Scrabble (tradition), a movie ('What About Bob?' of course, because of Lake Winnipesaukee), and a Mexican dinner with her husband. I was also able to co-DJ with her husband who volunteers for a Christian rock show. And ice cream? We had that twice. It was just so wonderful to be with BF and to see how her new house is coming along as she continues to paint rooms and decorate.

Lobster Dinner

I'm leaving the conference so thankful that I was able to come. The speakers were much more entertaining than last year, I saw many familiar faces and even made some new 'friends'.

Last night, we all boarded a ferry and rode across the bay to Pe.ak's Island for an amazing lobster dinner at an inn that you would only find on the East Coast. I'd never eaten an entire lobster before, but it was a fun experience! The lobster was served with a bowl of clam chowder, corn on the cob, a baked potato, and a roll. I literally got a great taste of Maine while being here. After our time on the island, many of us found ourselves at an Irish pub pounding our fists on the table and singing along as the band played.

The sad part of the evening was when I discovered that my Blackberry was nowhere to be found. Even worse than not being able to call others is not knowing when others are trying to call me! Unfortunately I had to tell my boss that no, I did not have a security code on my phone. Oops.

The rain is coming down hard outside with temps in the 50s. I'm hoping the skies clear up before Best Friend arrives and we explore the city a bit. The past two Fridays, I've been wanting to hang out with her and tonight I get to!-yay!

To answer your questions . .

I haven't been posting any of your comments, but thank you all so much for taking an interest in my life. It really means a lot.

A couple of questions that were asked:

"What car did he pick you up in?"
It was an Infiniti. I think a G35. I just read about it in MotorTrend last night. Throttle sensitivity and rigid chassis structure. I felt that. But whatever, it's a nice car. Infiniti's don't really do it for me, and I think he should've gone for the BMW, but whatever. Actually I think he should've gone for the new Malibu, because that thing is awesome! And affordable! And American! What more could you want?

"Does he have an accent?"
No. I guess I wouldn't mind if he had a slight accent, but nada.

"Is he someone you could see yourself getting serious with?"
I wouldn't want to say yet. But I wouldn't keep seeing him if I didn't think there was a possiblity. I ain't trying to waste my time. And I know he's not either.

Maine!

Maine is preeetty. It's also cold. And I hate cold. But I love pretty leaves. And those make up for the fact that I had to bring a coat. I am up here in Portland for a conference, and the most exciting part of the event so far has been . . you guessed it, eating! And handing out maps of the internet, yeah, that part is awesome, too. Please tell me you detected sarcasm in that, 'cause there was a lot.

Last night a group of us headed to the Old Port area, with its cobblestone streets and adorable shops, for a few drinks.

Tonight we're heading out on a ferry to Pe.ak's Island for dinner. It will be chilly, but I'm looking forward to the fresh seafood that will be waiting for me after the ride.

Tomorrow, Best Friend and her husband will be meeting me up here for an evening in the Old Port and a drive back to New Hampshire for the weekend. I can't wait to see her!

Crazy is Back

I met someone.

We’re practically in love.

DON'T take me too seriously.

DO place your email in the comments box, and I'll send you my draft post with full deets that I don't think I'll ever publish. If you don't want others to see your email, just email me at luvthislife81@yahoo.com.

p.s. We're going to dinner tonight. Boy is so cool.

p.p.s. He just called me at work and said, "So you got the work voice goin'? Wanna call me when you get out of there?"

Hot.

Fridays

Last Friday, I cried. I was homesick.

“Home sick? Ohhh, I’m sorry” a friend said when I called her.

“No. Homesick.”

“Ah, that’s almost worse.”

She was right. It is almost worse. I’d rather throw up and have it over with. Or have no choice but to lie on the couch with a box of Kleenex and watch television. Instead, I did it because I wanted to. Because there was no one else in the District of Columbia that I wanted to spend my night with.

Why?

Because no one here loves me! I’m not saying that in a tone of self-pity. It’s simply the truth. You can have fun and spontaneity and good food and laughs, but sometimes it’s not enough. Sometimes you need to be with people who love you. People that you love.

And that’s what I wanted last Friday. I wanted to be at the lake with my family, grilling steaks. Or sitting on my friends’ couch watching television, talking about nothing and everything at the same time. I wanted a hug from someone who meant it, from someone who’s known me longer than a year and a half.

But there were no hugs to be had that night. Instead there were phone calls. And the phone calls helped. Because if I couldn't hang out with the people I loved, at least I could hear their voices, and the love could be felt across the phone lines.

Those calls and those voices made me happy to spend the rest of the night alone, wandering the book store, getting Mediterranean to-go, cashing in my coupon for a free pint of Haagen-Dazs, and watching 20/20.

This Friday could've been a repeat of last, but instead I chose to be social. I went out with co-workers for the first time in a long time to celebrate a birthday. Em was there, and we split a delicious pizza at Mat.chbox, a place I've always wanted to try. It is most definitely the best pizza I've had in the city. (Ok, ok, I'll tell you exactly what I ate; herb-marinated chicken, portabella mushrooms, roasted red peppers, and mozzarella.) I cabbed home to put on my pajamas and watch football, but it didn't last long. Invited to the pool lounge across the street, I pulled a pretty late night with a friend from home and her co-workers. I also heard plenty of stories about life at the tv station. Maybe I should've gone into broadcasting.

Today is Taste of Beth.esda, and I hope to go sample a few restaurants and hear some live entertainment. The rest of the day? Football. Of course.

Here's who I spent last Saturday with:

The Bug aka Walker. And his sister, Michael.

Atop Federal Hill, overlooking Baltimore's Inner Harbor. With the Omaha girls.

Little Girls

Ok, let’s talk about something else. Anything else.

Let’s talk about the adorable little girls I babysat for last night. Cait.lin Belle and Ce.celia Rose. With names like that, they had to be cute. And they were.

Some children take several minutes, even hours, to warm up to you. But these girls were not the norm. Four-year-old Celia immediately grabbed my hand and gave me a tour of their gorgeous home, introducing me to Caitlin who instantly asked if I wanted to color. While coloring princesses, Cait (“Please call me Caitie or Cait or . . . I have lots of names.”) asked me all sorts of questions about myself. I’m sure I was never that inquisitive at age five. She wanted to know if I had a boyfriend, naturally, and what I did for a job (try explaining that to a Kindergartener). She even asked if I had wanted to be that (an account manager) when I was little. Meanwhile, Celia tried on princess dresses and galloped around the house on her stick horse, Dreamer. Dreamer ran three hundred miles without getting tired. Tulip, the golden retriever, was adorable too, as she tried climbing into my lap, ball in mouth, just begging for some attention in the most lovable way.

When we sat down to dinner in the kitchen, Cait told me about all the different food combinations she liked to eat and asked me if I’d tried each one. Rice and soy sauce? Ice cream and peas? Ketchup and eggs? Waffles and whipped cream? Edamame and sour cream? The list was endless.

We read not two, but four books, before going to bed. And one book deserved to be read three times before putting it back on the shelf. “Don’t Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late” was so much fun to read! “Again, again, again!”

Both girls, each in their separate rooms, asked me to sing to them or tell them a story about my day. I also got requests to “Please snuggle me”. I couldn’t believe they liked me that much after two hours!

After nearly an hour of stories, vitamins, glasses of water, snuggling, and determining if that loud noise was thunder, they were finally asleep.

I walked around their bright-colored homey home, admiring their taste in decorating and looking at black and white candids on the beaches of Bermuda (their old home). It made me excited to someday decorate my house in a way that reflects my family and our history.

I hope to be back to babysit again soon. And hopefully next time, their cute baby brother, Fenimore (2 mos), will stay home with us, too!

Now who's the weird one?

After letting my mind ooze out onto the blog in the last post, I found myself suddenly over it. No more crazy. Funny how that works. And after a few days of normal thought processes . .

He emailed. (Gah!)

And he asked me to go to a concert. (double Gah!)

In November. (Huh?)

My assumption is that this is a friend thing. Apparently he’s communicating that he would like us to be friends for at least another six weeks. And I would love to be his friend. In fact, I would prefer it. It’s just a little hard to know how to respond to the randomness. And I really don’t want to overthink this – which does mean not utilizing one of my greatest skills, but so be it. I just think that if people are to transition from going on dates to just being friends, something should be said.

Am I right? Tell me I’m right.

If you do, I promise I’ll write about something else next time!

inside my [crazy] mind

So Local Boy stopped calling me. I didn’t see it coming. Mind you, I’m very, very good at picking up on things like this. Except, come to think of it, I think there has only been one other time I’ve had someone stop calling me. And I was only sort of surprised that time. So I guess I really don’t have much experience in this department. But whatever.

The last time we hung out, I was about 100% positive he would call again. That is pretty positive. What I wasn’t positive about was whether or not I wanted him to call again. At what point do you make that decision? After how many dates are you no longer allowed to be unsure and yet still keep seeing someone? Usually I feel pretty strongly one way or the other, so I’m not often faced with this question. But I had decided that I enjoyed him enough to go out with him again. And he did call again, after he was live (on TV, his job) to ask what I thought of the story, since he knew I was watching that particular day. And after that call, I was about 110% sure he would call again . . until he didn’t.

And since that Day of Realization, I have gone through quite the series of emotions and thoughts. And to be honest, I’ve gotten pretty tired of myself.

How many times can you bounce back and forth between caring and not caring? I may have set a new record.

After it dawned on me that we probably weren’t going out ever again, my thoughts were primarily . .

“What????”

and

“Seriously???”

And after some time, I figured that I needed to end my thoughts with a period by deciding whether or not I cared. I was quick to remind myself that there were about five things I didn’t like about him. Three of which were legitimate and two of which were bright yellow – ok fine, red – flags. Things that could’ve potentially caused me much more emotional grief than someone choosing (ouch ouch ouch) not to call me. And thinking about those things has helped to quell the feelings of rejection that seem to rear their ugly head every other day. But my question is how? how do you feel rejected by someone you’re not sure that you like? Odd I think.

And following those feelings of rejection, my pride seems to frequently appear and say “’Scuse me! You did not just make the decision that we weren’t going to date anymore! That is my job! Your job, keep asking me out. My job, decide if I like you.”

I’ve told myself I should be relieved. I should be glad he spared me awkwardness of “ending things” myself. But I’m not exactly doing cartwheels down the street.

I’ve often thought “his loss” as I tell myself how much cooler I am than he is. Did I not have to give the courtesy laugh a few too many times? Did I not think “you did not just say that” on more than one occasion? So it is totally his loss. He'll never get to hang out with me again . . and worse yet, his chances of ever making out with me have gone right down the tube. Only that’s actually not entirely true, because I’m pretty sure that if he called me up and asked me to make out right now, I would do it, because ever since he stopped calling I suddenly find him ten times more attractive than I previously did. And I suddenly remember twenty more things I like about him that could rip those flags to shreds – er, probably not, but you know what I’m saying.

And this is what I’ve been dealing with lately, people. You’ve just seen a glimpse of what goes on inside this mind.

I can’t be normal.

*p.s. I totally know what I'm waiting for, and I know it will come, and I'm in no hurry . . though I'm always in a bit more of a hurry immediately following teasers like that.

Best Friend

I wish she was here. I miss her.

lazy post

I stole these questions off a daily email I get from church.

Q: Tell us about the adjustment from Omaha to Northern Virginia/D.C.
It didn’t really feel like an adjustment. One of my strengths, according to the Strengths Finder test, is adaptability. I moved and just knew things would be different, that life would change accordingly. And the changes were fun, most of them. It felt like an adventure.

Q: What does an average weekend look like for you?
Every weekend is different. I do whatever fun thing pops up. Last weekend, I spent it dog-sitting at this huge 4-story rowhouse in the city. I walked around the Dup.ont Circle neighborhood taking pictures, eating at Cir.ca’s bar by myself, making friends with the bartender. Weekends in the fall mean football every Saturday. All I want to do is wear red, watch as many games as possible, and eat greasy food.

Q: How did you find your church?
I actually attend two churches. A church leader from home mentioned the young adult ministry at FL, and I was determined to scope out a church before I even moved. It’s a lot like my home church, though there are things I miss about home. I think the greatest thing about FL is all the ways you can get involved and meet people. Plus, I love learning new worship songs and being surrounded by such a large community while worshiping. At my other church (that I consider my home church here) the worship feels more intimate and spirit-led, the people are ALL (at least everyone I've met) overflowing Jesus and super solid in their walks. I love the messages, the mission, the everything at that church . . but it is pretty small and harder to get involved.

Q: What is on your iPod?
A little bit of everything. I put it on random all the time. If I do that now, it plays Billy Joel, Vince Gill, Corinne Bailey Rae, Tim McGraw, and Hillsong United (worship music).

Q: What is on your TiVo?
I don’t have it, which is going to present a big problem when Grey’s and the Office start next week . . at the same time!

Q: Best friend in D.C.?
Well, probably my new roommate now. We have bunk talk at night, listen to daily sermons in the morning, just started waking up an hour earlier to have our quiet times with God, and we play tennis and plan on cooking together, too.

Q: What are you reading?
The Bible, When I Don’t Desire God (about fighting for joy, the eternal not temporal), Holiness and the Presence of God, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and several others I’ve begun but not finished.

Q: Favorite restaurant?
I feel like I should know the answer to this because I love eating out. It depends what I’m in the mood for. I do love Carlyl.e Grand right now. When I go home, I have to eat at Charleston’s and Farmhouse and probably El Bee’s.

Q: MySpace or Facebook?
Both of course.

Q: How did you accept Christ?
I was blessed to grow up in a home and church where I was taught about Jesus. When I was five, I went off by myself, knelt by my bed, and asked Him into my heart. When I was eleven, I realized that committing your life to God was a serious lifelong thing, so I contemplated it for awhile and decided I would jump in with both feet, forever! Best decision I ever made! I am so thankful for His grace.

Q: What dreams do you have regarding ministry?
I don’t really like to talk about my dreams with everyone, but I do have a few. I am more of a “live in the present” person rather than being futuristic. I’m just excited to see where God takes me. I will say that I love seeing people's hearts healed and watching them grow closer to the Lord. (And I'm going to be a small group leader soon!)

Q: Who are some of your favorite pastors to listen to, and why?
I listen to Alistair Begg all the time. I also love John Piper.

only three days away

Happy Pre-Pre-Pre GAME DAY!

Yeehaw!

Let me start by being honest. I was writing this post about money and how it’s so easy to spend and how I need to spend less of it and how I really want to pay off my debt soon. This led into me saying that I had decided to not buy a plane ticket to Austin for Thanksgiving because was that really the way I should be spending my money? And it was just so stinkin’ expensive that I simply couldn’t justify it. In fact, this was the very thing I had written: “I decided I shouldn’t go to Austin for Thanksgiving. I mean, I can’t justify $400 on the plane ticket even if I – “
But no sooner had I written that very thing than I opened up a new browser and began searching for tickets again. Because before I publicly declared I wasn’t going, I needed to make sure that was an accurate statement. And I can now say that that would no longer be an accurate statement . . because I purchased a ticket! And when I think about that ticket and that trip in November, a burst of joy fills my heart, and I think I might explode with happiness. I am so excited! And the ticket I found was $125-175 less than all the other tickets I was finding! Granted, I did have to leave one day later and return one day sooner than I had hoped, but . . so what! because I’m still going to be there for five days! Five whole days with my wonderful aunt and uncle and three cousins in such a fun, fabulous city – a city I haven’t visited in almost eight years! (I can’t believe it’s been that long.) On top of visiting my cousins, I will also be traveling with them to Houston on Turkey Day to visit my other cousin and his wife and kids. There are so many places I want to visit again while I’m there, but I’m going to refrain from making a list of things to do in order to spare myself any disappointment if they don’t end up happening. I’m going again, and that’s all that matters.

the approval process

Some want to know why their comments aren't showing up when they post. I have to approve them first. This way I eliminate all the junk comments.

post-post disclaimer

"I'm in a bad mood," I told Best Friend over the phone tonight.

"Were you in a bad mood when you wrote your blog this morning?" she asked.

"No," I said.

I think I was just feeling ornery.

If I ever sound unpleasant in my blog posts, please forgive me. I can be a bit sarcastic at times. I promise I'm a nice person . . if I do say so myself!

I can't resist calling this . . Sweet Suite

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting really tired of this blog being a constant update of what I did last weekend . . but I know I say that a lot. That’s why I tried to spice things up with a little call for some fashion advice in the last post. But only three people tried to help. This could mean a few things: 1) You could care less about my new dress (which I can only assume means that you don’t enjoy shopping), 2) You don’t trust your own fashion sense, or 3) You are too lazy to post a comment. I suppose your reason for not posting could be all of the above. In that case, you would be a lazy, unfashionable person who hates shopping. My heart goes out to you. But enough of me giving you a hard time for not posting . . and on to me giving you a life update.

I could tell you everything I did with Alabama Girl last weekend, but to be honest it was primarily spent watching football and reading gossip magazines while lying in our Heavenly Beds at the hotel just two miles from my apartment. I would not be overexaggerating to say that the hours we spent doing just that definitely hit the double digits. It was quite rejuvenating and made it very difficult to return to the twin Ikea bed and an apartment with no flat screen tv.

Friday night was the exception to the above. Alabama Girl had purchased tickets to the Orioles v. Red Sox game at Camden Yards, and I was very excited to enjoy the experience with her. RFK Stadium can’t touch Camden Yards, so it is always well worth a drive to Baltimore. Not to mention that the Orioles are more fun to watch.

So there we are, an hour late – big deal, because if I sat through an entire baseball game, I think I’d shoot myself – and we’re walking up to the gate, tickets in hand. A woman on her cell phone is approaching us, and holding out her tickets at the same time. “No, no, no,” we say. “We already have tickets.” She insists “Trust me, these are good seats”, placing them in Alabama’s hand and walking away. As we continue walking, Alabama gasps “These are suite tickets”. “SHUT! UP!” I say. We both stare at the tickets in our hands and do a quadruple take. The stranger just gave us tickets for a private suite!

Squealing with delight, we are afraid to believe it’s true. Surely there’s been some mistake. But as we’re allowed up the escalator toward the suites, we’re realizing it’s a reality. We walk into the suite, full of people, and soon we see that we didn’t just get suite tickets. We’re sitting behind home plate!

The experience was pretty phenomenal. The food, the view, the . . loss – well ok, the score of the game was pretty bad, but beyond that, it was amazing. Sitting in a box like that each game could really move the sport of baseball up in the ranks for me. We were, not surprisingly, the last ones out of the box, snapping pictures and filling up a box with leftover cookies and sweets . . and using the bathroom of course, you’ve gotta have the full experience.

Undoubtedly the game was the highlight of our weekend and a treat we’ll always remember.

maybe you need options

Since no one could think of any shoe ideas for my dress, I did a little research of my own. What do you think?

Fashion Advice

Two things:

1) Isn't my sister cute?

2) I bought some gray footless leggings to go with that dress I'm wearing. (Don't worry, I'll wear something underneath it since it's so low-cut. I had my swimsuit under it here.) But what color of shoes should I wear? HELP!

the bright side

Having company in town is . . a lot more fun than not having company in town. It feels like being on vacation. Only I can’t afford to be on vacation. In fact, I can’t afford to buy myself a new song on iTunes. Yes, that’s right – I don’t even have a dollar to spare. This month has just plain SUCKED financially. Remember how beautifully I was doing? Not buying myself anything for six long and painful weeks? Well, I did break the streak. I spent a full thirty dollars on a shirt this month. Everything else I wrote checks for was an unpleasant surprise. Surprise!-your car got towed. Surprise!-your claims haven’t gone through, so we won’t refund the money you paid us that you didn’t have to pay us in the first place but we asked you to anyway. Surprise!-you owe the state of Virginia more money. Surprise!-sort of-you have to register your car. I feel like I’ve already mentioned all of this in a previous post, so sorry to be repetitive.

The bright side in all of this is that my month starts in the middle of the month, so I only have nine more days of nail-biting (but let’s be honest, I always do that) and toast-eating (it’s actually quite yummy with jelly or Nutella). And the blessing in the bright side is that my friend has been so generous while she’s been staying with me, and we’ve enjoyed two very delicious meals out already with more fun plans in store. I really am speechless-ly grateful.

The point in all this is that although I’ve been staring at a big fat zero in my checking account, I’ve still had a wonderful month. My former youth group leader visited, and we spent a day at the beach. Mom’s visit meant food and shopping and quality time. Out-of-town Boy visited and took me to dinner. And now Alabama Girl is here and we’ve been having a wonderful time together with lots of laughs.

God is good.

The last few days have involved:

- very delicious Mexican food at Cab@na’s on the Waterfront
- melt-in-your-mouth brownies homemade by us
- walking around the shops in G-town
- homemade hot wings, white rice and a glass of Pinot (thanks to my roomie Lyn, the best cook ever!)
- bathroom talk and other candid conversation
- Chinese dinner where I picked my tilapia straight out of the fish tank and struggled to use my chopsticks properly
- College football on tv (We used to have all-day football Saturdays when living in the same city.)

Tonight we’re heading to B-more to watch the Orioles play the Red Sox. And although I live a full two miles from downtown D.C., we’re staying in a hotel this weekend to escape my full house. Fun times ahead!

Have a good weekend everyone!

feeling popular

Wow, my fabulous love life is getting confusing. Typical. Ha!-obviously I'm completely joking. But I thought I'd provide a little clarification on the odd amount of attention I've been receiving lately since I haven't been providing any specifics.

We have Out-of-Town Boy who sent the mystery flowers, was visiting D.C. last weekend, took me to dinner and watched the game at the pub with me.

We have Local Boy who I've gone out with three times. Same guy I ate the silica in front of. Same guy that took me to the baseball game.

And we have Boat Boy, one of the guys I go boating with that occasionally calls for no reason and wants to take me to dinner this week.

Out-of-Town Boy is the punster, the one that I enjoy least, the one that seems to have been the most persistent - go figure.

Local Boy is fun, considerate, I like him, but . . not so sure.

Boat Boy is funny, fun and owns a boat. Do I even need more in a guy? But seriously, I'm not attracted to him. And most importantly, he doesn't love Jesus.

So there's the scoop. Bottom line: I'm probably going to be single for awhile.

my Labor Day

Not only did the Boy get us great seats at the Nats game, he took me to dinner on the Waterfront, ordered me fried calamari even though he doesn't like it much, and let me watch football on his huge flat screen. Best part of the night? Dancing in his living room to Justin Timberlake's live concert . . well, me more than him. Can someone say comfortable?

change of plans

Could you sense the negativity in my 'Beaches' post? Being the positive person that I am, I took it as a good indication that I shouldn't go to the beach this weekend. I just didn't have a peace about it. And whenever a feeling of unease overpowers my love of all things fun in life, I know that I best be going with my gut. It still doesn't make a whole lotta sense to me, but I know that staying home was the right thing to do, and I haven't regretted it for a second.

Boy that sent the mystery flowers and lives out of town happened to be in town this weekend, and I decided the nice thing to do would be to . . let him take me out to dinner. Er, I mean hang out with him. Honestly, I didn't realize the night would consist of scrumptious baked and tender halibut served over a moist polenta cake topped with vegetable salsa . . or that it would be followed by a warm chocolate macadamia nut waffle next to a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream drizzled with chocolate and caramel. Otherwise, I would've been way more excited about it. The more chances I give this boy to win me over with some aspect of his personality, the more I am annoyed by his silly puns and quirky habits. I feel mean saying that, but can I be honest on my own blog? He is such a nice guy, but there is absolutely nothing that would lead me to believe that we would be a good match. And for that reason I made a specific effort to explain in great detail why I would not want to move back to my home state (even though I love love love it).

I took him back to his hotel at a relatively early hour, but not before he asked if he could watch the Nebraska game with me on Saturday at the glorious pub near Union Station. I said 'of course' only partially hesitant. I don't mind having his company, and I'd made perfectly clear my non-interest so no harm in having him tag along.

The next day, donned in red, I awaited his call to let me know he was ready. He'd had to pick up his new 'toy' several miles away. The word that would best describe the way I was feeling after getting his call is: angry. Or rather irritated, I suppose. We were going to be late. I chose immediately to pick up a bad attitude and phone my mother to vent. "Gah!! Mom! I am so irritated!! Now we are going to be really late and there won't be anywhere to sit!!", I said as I pulled my car up to his truck and tensed my muscles in frustration. Suddenly, the large styrofoam cup full of fruit smoothie and sandwiched between my legs broke open and my healthy lunch began oozing out the side and into my crotch. I screamed, hung up the phone and endured his laughter as he saw what had happened. Exactly what I deserved for being in such a sour mood.

I was right about not finding a place to sit. Although it was a holiday weekend and we were up against an unranked team, the die-hard Husker fans were there and just as pumped as I was for the season to start. At least 300 people filled the four rooms displaying nothing but the Nebraska game on the big screens. I met a rowdy crowd near the bar and became the victim in their celebratory human push-ups display in the middle of Mass Ave. I didn't realize I'd be thrown into the air thirty-five times when I agreed to step outside. We dominated Nevada of course and when the game was over, my appetite for football was still not satisfied. So the boy and I grabbed some burgers and fries from F!ve Guys and watched the Cal game back at my apartment.

Today I am more aware of the fact that my friends are on the beach while I've been sitting here in my pajamas for the past three hours. But I'm excited for a low-key day of church, the pool and who knows what else. And tomorrow I've got plans with another boy to see the Nats play. I guess it's nice to not always be so busy.

because the season starts tomorrow

Where I'd rather be



Go Big Red!

Beaches

It was only two weeks ago that I was on Virginia Beach with two friends and my former church youth group leader (who also happens to be my friends' former 6th grade teacher).

We stayed the night together and woke up bright and early at 5:30am to leave for the beach . . only to discover my car had been towed. (Apparently you need a permit to park in visitor parking.) A couple phone calls and a hundred dollars later, I had my car back and we were on our way. Fortunately the bad start to the day wasn't any indication of what the rest of the trip would be like.

Although it took us over five hours to drive a distance that should've taken three, it was well worth it. The weather was perfect and the company was too. We had a lot of laughs and thanks to one of the girls, we stayed the night in a nice hotel.

It was great to get away, even for a short time. And although I hadn't spent a significant amount of time with my youth leader in years, it was easy to pick up right where we left off. I hope we made her trip out to the East Coast fun and memorable. I know it was for me.

And here I am, only two weeks later, heading to the beach again. This time, the Jersey Shore again. I'm looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. While I love my friends and know we'll have fun, I know it will take double the time to drive there tomorrow and on the way back.

This weekend, the Huskers kick off the season at home against Nevada. I know I'll want to watch the game, but it will really take away from my hours in the sun. And I'm sure I'll be watching it alone. On top of that, the boys called and said they're taking the boat out on L@ke Anna this weekend. I honestly would rather ski than lay on the beach. But I decided to go to the Shore and there's no turning back. I don't know why I'm not excited, but I hope it's not a foreshadowing of what's to come.

mom and me

Is it any wonder that Em said, "*Gasp* She's you!"

mommy visit

Mom was just here for five days. And she was probably ready to go after several nights on the air mattress and me force-feeding her expensive food, or rather forcing her to pay for it. Not to mention the fact that I nearly got us dehydrated because of my brilliant idea to take the scenic route on our walk. Five to six miles in 95 degree weather with 75 percent humidity, no water, no money, no cell phone. It was only at the halfway mark that our tongues were hanging out of our mouths and we collapsed under the shade of a tree, our hearts pounding and our heads slightly spinning. I had failed to mention to her just how long the scenic route was. It was my stealth attempt at getting us some exercise. It was also the first time I walked into an ice cream shop and only asked for water. We finally hailed a cab, and I ran upstairs for money when he dropped us off. Another one of those times where I just want to look at myself in the mirror and say . . “Idiot!”

Other than eating and nearly dying, we spent some time cooking, baking and shopping. I finally replaced the Citizens that were stolen from my laundry room months ago! And if there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that it has to be a sin to spend that much on a pair of jeans. But what a sweet sin it is. Thanks Mom!

Sunday was Cousin J’s 35th birthday. Back in Nebraska, our families would celebrate the four August birthdays together each year. Cousin J, Cousin Joy, Dad, and me. (In fact, two years ago I wrote about J being in town to celebrate here.) Grandma would make angel food cake with homemade frosting every time. So in order to bring a little home to J on his birthday, Mom and I made the cake with frosting for him. The smile on his face was priceless. He even asked if he could keep the rest of the cake after we’d each had a piece with our Haagen-Dazs. He and his wife, K, gave me my belated gift – a cute little Longchamp pouch, perfect for make-up and other things I don’t want floating around in my purse. It was a fun night just being with them, eating cheeseburgers and corn & couscous, playing with Walker, and holding the baby.

I was sad to see mom go, but I hope she enjoyed her time here, finally seeing where I live, seeing where I work, meeting several of my friends and . . even eating at my favorite restaurants. 

Next up is Dad, since I wouldn’t allow him to come along with Mom. After all, two visits are better than one!

frame of mind

It was the picture frame. But actually, it wasn't even a picture frame. It was a mirror. A mirror with a wooden frame of black swirlies and . . I just can't do it justice. It was lovely. And it put me in a bad mood.

Why? Because I couldn't buy it. At least I didn't feel right about buying it. Not with that last medical bill I have to pay. And that letter from the Commonwealth of Virginia saying I owe them more money for taxes. (They're wrong, by the way. And hopefully my accountant can prove it.)

I've gone six and a half weeks (but who's counting?) without buying myself a single, solitary thing. Except the Harry Potter book when I was delayed at the airport. But that doesn't count, because what was I supposed to do? Sit there and do nothing for four hours? I'm sure that six weeks doesn't sound like a long time to some, but it's quite a milestone for me. Makes me feel like my self-control is off the charts.

I didn't even have a place to put the mirror. And I think that's what made me sad. Not the not buying. The not needing. The not having a cozy place to decorate. Sometimes it gets to me. I'm 26 and I feel like I live in a huge dorm room. It's not just that I don't have the funds to decorate right now. It doesn't make any sense to. Why invest in something temporary?

I think I wanted the mirror to make me forget about the temporary. It would remind me that someday I'll have a place to decorate. Something to invest in. And it will be lovely.

hideous

I'm trying to fix the ugliness of this page ASAP.

For those of you who care - basically what happened is that the template I was previously using became unavailable somehow. It was linked to a URL.

I will miss that template. Our time together was too short.

I only hope I don't scare you all away with the boring blue!

instant messages

Co-worker: L, this is what happened in song of Solomon. She was NOT all about him at first. he had to keep going after her. if it would KILL you (and that's TOTALLY fair - i've been there) to have him pursue you, then you're right, you can't do it. But if you think that you could stand it, i would let it happen a little bit.

Me: oh man

Co-worker: lol, i love NOT being the one to make decision

What happened to my pretty pink template??

I have no idea!

my weekend

Over Halfway to Fifty

Once again, pleasantly surprised on my birthday. I want to give a shout out to all the Facebook commenters. Thanks for reading your sidebar yesterday and taking the time to click on my name and wish me a happy birthday. Seriously. Reading comments is much more fun than working.

My first birthday wish was a text from Cousin Joy, whose 22nd birthday happens to be today. We used to celebrate our birthdays together, and I wish this year could’ve been the same. There would have been a lot more chocolate involved, that’s for sure.

My old bedroommate and birthday-sharer, EB, gave me a call bright and early and we wished each other a “Happy Best Day of the Year”.

I had a big lunch with two co-worker friends at the Daily Grill. Chicken parmesan and cheesecake in strawberry sauce. It was a gazillion times tastier than it sounds. And it was free which makes it even more delicious and enjoyable.

Birthday calls from people I love and two boys I don’t like like that. This is when the “I’m working” excuse comes in real handy.

I received one gift in the mail from Anonymous. Two bouquets of irises. The note read “Hope you have a Happy Birthday!!!” Thank you Whoever You Are. I can probably count on one and half hands the number of times I’ve been given flowers, so I was pretty delighted. I’ll be lucky if I can keep them alive for a week, but I’ll do my very best. I carefully followed steps 1-4 on the plant food package so I think I’m off to a good start.

All three of my roommates left cards on my pillow. One with a gift certificate to my favorite Mediterranean mezze place. Lyn, the newest roomie, told me the last two weeks have been better than the previous nine months for her. I think hearing that was better than the gift certificate. Words better than food. Never thought I’d say that.

Not only did Lyn give me a hilarious card with nice words, she made me a crepe cake! Layers of crepes with nutella and cream sandwiched between each one. She is awesome!

I went to dinner with five girlfriends, the old Bible study girls. A couple I hadn’t seen all summer due to traveling and crazy work schedules. We sat on the deck of Indigo Landing, right on the Potomac next to the marina. The food was Southern-ish, but pretty random. I ordered the roasted chicken and asparagus with a pimento cheese fondue-stuffed charlotte. Don’t even pretend like you know what that is. I didn’t. I’ve found that if I’ve no idea what I’m ordering, it’s bound to be delicious. And it was just as pretty as it was tasty. My dessert was the banana pudding. And it was actually done right – with fresh bananas and warm meringue on top!

My friends are so cute. Bruin Girl asked me tons of questions about my birth story and favorite birthday memories growing up. And Kentucky gave me an adorable polka dot umbrella from Crate and Barrel. Apparently the host thought they were cute, too. When I arrived, he asked me if we were all models. Have you ever seen a model that was 5 foot 2?

I haven’t, but I know a girl that height that had a really nice birthday yesterday.

Twenty-Six

"I don't know what the future holds
Or what lies beyond my horizon
The years ahead are just out of sight
Well I think sometimes that You hide them
So that I walk by faith, not sight
So that I take Your hand, holding tight

Through twenty-six summers and twenty-six winters
I've laughed in the springtime, I've cried in the rain
Though I've questioned the meaning in some of life's seasons, it's true
They've left me holding on tighter to You

My one desire for the road ahead
Is that we would walk it together
Friend and King, You're my everything
May I stay by Your side forever
For when my heart's afraid, You're near
Whispering to my soul "Don't fear"

I will trust in You alone
For You're the hand leading me home

I've spent twenty-six summers and twenty-six winters with You
Through all of the seasons and my search for reasons
You've carried me through

I will keep holding on to You"

-Vicky Beeching, Painting the Invisible

I miss my friends

Lyn

So my new bedroommate. She is great. And how did I stumble across a great roommate who happened to also be a total stranger? GOD PROVIDES. I’m really trying to drive that point home – is it working? Hey, a truth like that just never gets old.

First of all, my roommate is sweet as can be (in part because she knows Jesus). Second, she is clean. Third, she thinks I’m funny. Fourth, she likes Nacho Libre.

What more could I ask for?

Lullaby

Forget "Twinkle Twinkle" . . Michael needs a little hip hop in her life. Does anyone recognize this despite my weak attempt at singing?

Ladylike

I went on a date last night. And I'm not going to tell you about it. But I AM going to tell you a story about what happened on it.

*We are seated at a fancy Italian restaurant I've always wanted to dine at.* I’m chewing my gum pretty vigorously, as I always do when I chew gum, when the bread and olive oil come. Yum! I am ready to eat! But there is nowhere to dispose of my gum. (This is the one negative about nice cloth napkin restaurants.) So we’re looking around. Where can I put it? I could ask our can’t-speak-English server, but I don’t have the patience for that. Must.eat.bread.now. The only thing in my purse that could possibly work is a silica gel pack – the things that keep your stuff fresh. Nevermind why it is still in there, but it is. So I stick my gum in it and attempt to fold the very small package around the gum. It suddenly busts open and spills beads all over my plate and the table. As I watch the beads quickly disintegrate in the olive oil, I decide I won’t be dipping my bread anymore. (He does offer to let me use his plate, but I’m all “No I’ll just eat the bread by itself”.) Gum set aside, I break off a piece of the bread and am in the process of enjoying it when I taste something very strange . . and very strong. I’m eating a silica bead! - you know, the “Do not ingest” silica beads. And I don’t know what to do. I mean I can’t swallow it, because I’ll probably be sent to the hospital. So I’ve nothing left to do but spit this huge mouthful of bread and silica into my cloth napkin right in front of him.

If the ice had still needed to be broken, I would've shattered it.

I am SO classy.

Idiot

He said next weekend was his last. His new position starts, and he’ll be traveling with the President, working weekends. Only one day left for boating maybe, and that’s this Saturday.

Somehow I just forgot this. I just hit reply and said “Yes, I can babysit all day Saturday”. And now it’s hit me. I chose babysitting over boating. I just lost that last day on the lake.

I wonder if maybe the Lord made me forget. I do need the money, and it means a lot of that. Medical bills, deductibles suck. This is the Lord providing for me, and I’m thankful for that. But I’m praying (literally) that this isn’t it. He did say ‘probably’, didn’t he? I think I remember him saying it was probably his last weekend. I’m hoping in the smidge of doubt in that 'probably'.

I'm a Fool for You

Dear [Lake] Ann@,

Sunday was one of the best days of my summer because, for the third time, I spent it with you. You and the fun guys that own that boat, the L0uella Jane. It was a hazy day that looked a little like rain but that didn’t keep us from grabbing our snacks, our tubes and our towels and backing the boat down into you. Despite the haze, you were as beautiful as ever and the perfect temp, warmed as usual by the nearby nuclear power plant. You must like cloudy Sundays because so many fewer boats are out. I know I was happy. I gladly learned that your dockside café makes the most delicious homemade crab cakes and hand-cut fries. It was the perfect lunch to eat on the boat as we cruised our way toward one of your coves. We always bring not one, but two tubes to ride over the gigantic waves created by other boats and Louella’s 360s. Two tubes for tube wars, ramming into each other as we glide back and forth across the wake. Sunday’s ride was intense and I was certain I was a goner multiple times. I don’t know that I’ve ever caught that much air, but I loved every body-slamming, hard-leaning minute. I’m about to be 26 this month, but all it takes is a tube ride to make me giggle like a kid again. Twice, it began to sprinkle and shoo the other boats away. But we didn’t go anywhere. And once it cleared, you glistened like glass and I heard you begging me to come and ski again. “Remember last year?” you said. The excitement grew in my chest as I recalled breaking in the Connelly the year before. Then my mind darted to a more recent memory and the look on my therapist’s face when I told her I planned to ski. “See how you feel . . maybe if it’s smooth,” she said. “I would wear your brace.” I dug through my bag in search of my brace but it appeared I had left it behind. My heart sank. But as I turned to see you so peaceful again, I felt a calm come over me, and at that moment, I knew you’d take care of me. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass me by. I quickly unzipped the bag to remove the sleek, narrow-tunneled slalom ski and admire its lovely red-and-white colors. I was the only person to ever use the ski so I felt as though it belonged to me. Between you and the ski, everything would be just fine. After two attempts, I successfully locked my legs against your push and balanced one foot behind the other until I was up and out. I sailed along your smooth and ripply, just enjoying the ride outside the wake. No tricks today, I thought. You carried me well, and I didn’t stop smiling until I let go of the rope and slowly sank back down into your warm embrace. I wished I could hug you right back.

Love,
L

MAINE

Walker's Point, the Bush compound



From further away



another town in Maine

Farewell

She's gone. No more cheery "Good morning!" when I open my eyes at 7am. No more "Sleep well" when I'm tucked into bed. No more 'bunk talk'. No more animated stories that I never know how to respond to because I can't reciprocate her enthusiasm. No more trying to convince her to break her routine . . to stay up a little later, to eat two ice cream cones in one day, to go for a walk instead of doing laundry. No more EB. I went to her going-away cookout this week, and we had a roommate dinner at Lost D0g hours before she left.

The good news is that she won't be in Boston for law school anymore. She's been accepted at Duke! It's much closer. It's drivable. And . . it's Duke! I've always wanted to visit. Too bad being a student doesn't make basketball tickets any more attainable.

Other good news is that her closet is about 2 square feet larger than mine so I'm moving in! Seniority you know. My new roommate, Lyn, moves in on Saturday. It's crazy that I went from having zero options to three options in a matter of days. God more than provides.

Universal definition

The other day, someone in Korea searched for “cornhead” on a Korean search engine and the very first result was my blog.

Yes, my Korean friend. That is a cornhead.

One month 'til football season.

The Wonderful that was my Weekend

Despite two unwonderful things taking place, my weekend was absolutely wonderful. BFF and her husband just moved back to his hometown of Manchester, New Hampshire, and I flew up to visit them and celebrate at their second wedding reception.

On Friday, I drove for two and a half hours in traffic to get to the Baltimore airport, a drive that usually takes 45 minutes. I rushed into the terminal a bundle of nerves thinking for sure I’d miss my flight only to learn that it was delayed four hours. I was mainly upset because I had no idea exactly how I would bide my time. At first I hoped to make a new friend at gate A4, and I walked back and forth, looking up and down the rows for someone who appeared friendly. Eventually I recognized the opportunity as one that could best be spent reading the first Harry Potter book. I’m way behind I know, but I’ve only just decided that I can’t bear to be left out of the Harry Potter Fan Club anymore.

When BFF, her husband, and his friend picked me up at the Manchester airport, we drove straight home and went right to bed. It was nearly 1:30 in the morning.

The next day, seven of us piled into the SUV for a day trip up the coast of Maine. BFF’s parents and her grandmother were visiting from Nebraska, as well as Ry’s friend. It made for a full car, but also a lot of laughs. We stopped first in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire for Sal’s greasy gigantic pizza slices and continued up the coast as we snacked on cinnamon taffy and fudge. We stopped in a couple of quaint little towns to shop and take pictures . . and buy more taffy. Our final destination was Kennebunkport, the most adorable town of all. We stopped at a darling hotel, Maine Stay, to ask for directions to the Bush compound, Walker’s Point, and when we arrived it was more amazing than I could’ve imagined. The American and Texas flags let us know the President was there along with the secret service vehicles that were parked near the gate. On the ride home, we pulled into Billy’s Chowder House for calamari, bacon-wrapped scallops, Billy’s famous lobster rolls, seafood samplers, crabcakes and . . a hot dog for Grandma Bern. And it wouldn’t be a typical dinner with her family without dessert . . this time, the Brownie Delight. Soft, warm brownie hidden beneath mounds of homemade ice cream and hot fudge. We could do nothing but sit on the living room couch after a dinner like that.

Sunday was reception #2, a casual party in the groom’s parents’ backyard. The pool was open for swimming and large tents were set up with tables. Yellow and white were the floral centerpieces and balloons. More bacon-wrapped scallops were passed around, along with deviled eggs as appetizers. Steak tips, hamburgers, and chicken were devoured by everyone, along with fruit, pasta salad, and vegetables. Nearly 200 people mingled and enjoyed the shade of the tents as the jazz music played in the background.

Soon it was nearly time for me to catch my flight back home. But Ryan’s friend, who had driven their furniture out in his trailer, was heading the same direction by truck. And a road trip sounded much more fun than a boring old plane ride. So I hopped in the passenger seat and rode ten hours home.

In that ten hours, we nearly ran out of gas (0 miles to empty and sputtering on diesel with a huge trailer in the back), nearly peed our pants (apparently Connecticut doesn’t have rest stops or public bathrooms), and drove all the way down Broadway through the Bronx and Manhattan at 2:30am. Coolest thing ever. Central Park, Eiffel Tower, Times Square, Greenwich Village, Chelsea Pier . . and we were nearly the only car on the road. Seeing all those neighborhoods again made me want to visit New York again really soon.

He dropped me off at the airport, and I drove 90 minutes home, dressed for work in 10 and have been running on four hours of sleep all day. Shortly after parting ways, I realized I had left my Blackberry in his truck. (Unwonderful thing #2.) I now have no phone. And the poor guy has to mail it to me. I feel terrible.

Tonight is the big night. I’ll pick a roommate. One more girl to meet. And it’s EB’s going away party, too. I don’t know what I’ll do without her . . her cheery voice, her animation, our conversations, our bagel and ice cream runs (not at the same time, of course). She will be missed. Even more than my Blackberry.

*Pictures are on their way!

Search, Trust, Pray, and Find

The past six weeks I've been at peace in my search for a roommate. Not just a roommate, but a bedroommate, someone to take EB's place when she leaves for law school in Boston. I've been at peace because I trusted that He would provide someone. After all, this wasn't just a desire, it was a need. I couldn't afford to pay more in rent, and I'm pretty sure He's not a big fan of credit cards. I've recommitted to being a good steward of my finances, to trust Him, to not buy too many dresses and nice dinners and then say "Help!" and revert to the Visa. So I was confident He'd bring someone along. It wasn't hard to be; He's always orchestrated everything else in my life.

It wasn't hard to trust Him until yesterday. Yesterday I realized I was down to the wire. EB moves out on Tuesday which is less than a week away. So I panicked. I cried at my desk. I advertised on Craigslist again (in addition to several church classified sites) and emailed back and forth with several girls.

Last night, two girls stopped by. They were both great and seemed very interested. I'm going to pray about it and extend an 'offer' tomorrow. I know that the right person will want to take it.

I'm so relieved that I can get on that plane tonight and not be stressed. God is so faithful!

I'll be smiling when I go to bed tonight from the . .

Most wonderful day ever!

Boating all day with QGP and his friends was perfection. As many of you know, my absolute favorite thing to do is go boating on the lake, so despite my injury and no wakeboarding or skiing, it was incredible to just sit on the boat with the wind in my face as the sun sparkled on the water. I don't think there's anything better.

I brought Em with me, a girl who can appreciate the water like I do because she's grown up boating on the Colorado River and San Diego Bay. The girl really wowed us all with her crazy wakeboarding skills. She put the boys to shame and was giving them quite a few pointers.

When we arrived (after 2 1/2 hours of awful traffic), the boys had sandwiches made for us with our names written on the plastic bags. Mine with mayo, Em's with mustard - how cute. We turned up the tunes in the boat and took off across the 17-mile lake. We stopped to jump in and play catch for awhile, and I decided I was ok to tube with Em (as long as I kept the brace on). I'm glad I didn't have to miss out on all the activities.

I finally felt comfortable enough to pull out the camera to capture these fun memories, but I'd forgotten to bring it on the boat!

Just as I suspected, neither Em nor I were ready to leave when the boating was done, but we'd each made other plans for the evening. Grilling out and not showering sounded so much better!

I'm hoping we can go again very soon. It's certainly motivation for me to do my knee exercises!

I am an awesome gift giver!

Can I tell you how excited I am to give this awesome gift to my bedroommate EB for her birthday? They actually make one of these! EB got me hooked on this show. I'm obsessed. There are actually petitions for NBC to make bobbleheads of all the other characters. I'm afraid I might be dork enough to want to collect them. I didn't say I would - I just said I would want to.

Apparently I Rock!

Wow! Cady gave me a Rockin’ Girl Blogger award. What a fantastic compliment!

This is why she thinks I rock :) :

laura at love this life: laura does what her title suggests. she loves life and lets us read all about it. she also loves her family, who she recently moved away from, and her friends. i love reading about all the fun and crazy times she has, and i love how she loves to post pictures. oh, and laura lives in d.c. now, which is near where i used to live in maryland, so i can reminisce when i read her d.c./maryland-centered posts.

Again, thank you to Cady! My job now is to give the award to five more bloggers who rock. The problem is that I only read the blogs of people who rock. So if your name is on that sidebar there, I think you are pretty awesome. Actually, even if your name is not there, I might read your blog but have been too lazy to ever add you to the list.

All that being said, [rubbing my hands together out of excitement] I would like to give the award to:

Pink Sun Drops: Pink doesn’t know this but she got me hooked on blogs. Her cute page and “100 Things”, “Layers of Pink” etc – I devoured it all and kept coming back for more. Pink is my age but in a completely different place in life as a wife and mother to two adorable boys who used to be known as “Big Guy” and “Little Guy”. She has done some homeschooling and made learning so much fun for her children – something I really admire. In a world that says “it’s all about you”, she honors the Lord by putting her husband and children before herself. Oh! and I will never forget that she introduced me to her wonderful cousin in San Diego who I attended church and hung out with during my time there.

K at Misadventures of K: K is a blogger I have had the pleasure of actually meeting in person. She is Miss Independent of Seattle. She’s done a lot of traveling by herself (something I could never do) and takes advantage of all her city has to offer. A very smart girl, she headed back to school last year to further her engineering education and hopes to teach someday. Her only flaw is that she doesn’t blog enough anymore! :)

Miss J at Livin’ La Vida Dolce: Miss J is in the process of making a move from Southern California back to the Midwestern city of Tulsa (yay for the Midwest!) She is fabulous at hosting parties and putting trendy outfits together. I love hearing the latest about everything from her dog, Dolce, to her and her husband’s plan to re-vamp their sk@ting rink.

Steph@nie at Greek Tr@gedy: Can I give an award to an already-famous blogger? I just love the way Stephanie writes. And her pictures? She’s an amazing photographer. She talks about memories like they happened yesterday, making them come alive again. Her little “beans” as she calls them are so adorable. And I love that she lives in Austin, but is totally a New Yorker at heart.

Morgan and Mama Loves Papa: Morgan is such an inspiration to me. She is living out her faith in such a beautiful way. She's a wonderful wife and mom as well as a discipler of several women. Because she knows God so intimately, He has given her a heart to intercede for others and care for them with His love. She is regularly seeing God move and heal hearts and nothing excites me more than that!

Afternoon Delight

Since New Girl left, Em has become my favorite friend at work, a ‘promotion’ that came as no surprise to me. Em is the SoCal girl who brought her ‘biscuit slang’ to the East Coast. When she says OMG, she really says O.M.G.!, always wanting to shorten her words, sounding ditzy when she’s far from it. My vocabulary has been expanded to not only include the word ‘peeps’ but also ‘gnarly’ and ‘scuse’. After all, why say ‘excuse me’ when ‘scuse’ is so much easier?

Em and I don’t restrict our fun to business hours. We get together at least a few times a month outside of work, too, whether it be at the grocery store, by the pool, roaming the mall, or whatever else suits our fancy. She is so much fun, and whatever it is I’m doing, she’s at the top of my invite-along list.

Just as Em moved upstairs during the workspace re-arrange, I was moved back down (to the most quiet, boring corner of the office). But thank goodness for IM and Afternoon Delights. Every once in awhile, if we’re having a slow day (on the same day), we’ll make the two-block trek to McDonald’s for a yummy 150-calorie cone. Em calls it Afternoon Delight. It was Friday Afternoon Delight, but it’s been known to also be Thursday Afternoon Delight and sometimes even Monday.

It’s been too long since we’ve taken one of those delightful trips down the street, so today on her birthday I brought her a Birthday Afternoon Delight. But it wasn’t McDonald’s. A McD’s cone on her birthday just wouldn’t be delightful enough. Instead we celebrated with Haagen-Dazs. Em grabbed her plateful of fresh brownies from her birthday-decorated workspace and we sat in the lunchroom, just the two of us, gabbing and sharing the pint. One bite of brownie, one bite of ice cream, one bite of brownie, one bite of ice cream.

Happy Birthday Em! I’m delighted to call you my friend!

Me and my knee

The only negative about my trip home two weeks ago was the bad ending to my day at the lake, the 4th of July. I had been waiting all day for the water like glass, only a few boats out, and the sun close to going down. I strapped on my lifejacket . .

. . . got in the water . . .

. . . got up on one . . .

. . . stayed up on one (of course :) . . .

. . . and wiped out after hitting some very rough waves.

The wipe out was bad. My boot was on too tight and my foot would not break free! As the ski was carried with the waves, so my foot (and consequently, my knee) were taken with it. Ouch! As I sat there in the water, a wave of fear came over me. I knew I'd tore something. I tried to be optimistic - maybe it was only a sprain. But when you've been the victim of a few torn ligaments, you just know when things aren't right in there.

So I yelled, "I'm gonna try it again!" I grabbed the rope and fear grabbed me. But I told my brother to 'hit it' and he gave it some gas. It didn't take long for me to realize I WAS AN IDIOT and let go of the rope. Whatever I had done, I didn't want to make it any worse.

I swam to the boat, awkwardly climbed the ladder and took a seat inside. That was it? That was what I had been looking forward to this past year? I didn't even make it halfway around the island! And not only was my ski over, my summer was over, and I knew it. I knew my knee was busted. I silently began to cry as we drove back to the house. And I couldn't stop the tears. Not again! This would be my third time severely injuring a knee.

Three of my wonderful uncles laid hands on me and prayed, and I tried to hold back more tears and be positive. Maybe it wasn't as bad as before. Uncle Rich believed it wasn't.

Two days later, I found myself back in the exam room at OrthoWest, a place I am quite familiar with after experiencing two torn ACLs (and an MCL along with one of those injuries).

I studied the same chart I'd studied before and tried to diagnose myself before the doctor came in to see me.

I was optimistic. It didn't feel like a torn ACL. But it was a torn something.

Dr. Ray sent me for an X-ray and an MRI to confirm that his diagnosis was correct. I had torn my MCL, the ligament on the inner part of my knee. I was ecstatic! It meant no surgery, no year-long recovery, and no crutches. All it meant was six weeks in the brace and four weeks of physical therapy. Now that I can handle!

My physical therapy begins tomorrow, and I'm already walking much better. I won't lie - I'm disappointed that I can't be active this summer. I'm bummed that I can't do any cardio to stay in shape. I'm annoyed that I have to wear this nuisance of a brace. But more than all of those feelings, I am THANKFUL. It could've been worse.

#6

I’ve never loved Nebraska more than I do now. And I love it here, too (for now) but I am constantly telling everyone how wonderful it is back home.

Now I have “proof”.

Money magazine just listed Papillion, Nebraska (a suburb of Omaha) as the 6th Best Place to Live! The criteria were cities that offered the best combination of economic opportunity, good schools, safe streets, things to do and a real sense of community. See, I told you Nebraska was great!!

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2007/index.html

Home is a Runza

Here and There

Going home is like opening a huge present, one that you asked for vaguely in that you know what to expect but have no idea what exactly it will look like. When I go home, I know who I will see, and I often know what I will do, but I don’t know the specific moments I will experience or the special memories I will make. I take an embarrassing amount of photographs, yet I’m not embarrassed, and I spend weeks looking at them remembering and often re-feeling the way I felt when they were taken.

When I'm there, I miss it. But when I'm here, I don't. Not really. Because I know this is where I'm supposed to be. I'm supposed to be working at this wonderful company, constantly meeting new people, living a random and spontaneous life never knowing what the weekend might hold. I'm supposed to be sharing a bedroom, sleeping in a twin bed, staring out my window at the Potomac, eating Lean Cuisines for dinner, and getting bagels at the Brooklyn Bakery on Saturday.


It makes me sad to know that people's lives go on without me there to watch. Children grow, my sister goes to school, friends go out for dinner, Grandma watches old movies . . without me. I hate missing out. That should be my motto. Don't do anything fun or memorable without me! But it doesn't take much to qualify for that category. Because grilling out on my friends' deck, that counts. Watching Frasier reruns on the couch counts. Sitting in a driveway at midnight chatting counts. Going to Wal-Mart for toiletries almost counts. It's being with the people I love.


I like the people here. But will like ever turn to love? Or will everyone move away as soon as love knocks on the door? New Girl is gone and sucks at responding to email even though she promised she wouldn't be. Bedroommate EB moves out in two weeks, and someone else's bed moves in. And we'll be right back at 'like' again.


Pastor says to put your roots down in this transient city. Live like you're never leaving. Love like you're never leaving.