it's been a while...
Sorry for the lack of posting recently. Life has just been too busy. I am in my... third week of teaching, I think. It's going really well. I love second grade. I've been teaching math primarily, and just helping out with everything else that goes on in the classroom.
Last weekend was the Fusion leadership retreat that has become an annual event for the month of August. We stayed in town this year, which worked out way better than I expected. I just keep being amazed by the awesome people I get to work along-side in ministry. I am so blessed.
This weekend I am in Ft.Lauderdale with Rob visiting his family for his dad's birthday. It's always a good time here. The Stone family is full of wonderful people and I really enjoy being around them.
This week Fusion is making the move to Thursday nights at 8:00, which is such a blessing. Being late at night didn't bother me when I was just in classes at Flagler, especially when I lived in the dorms, because I never had to wake up rediculously early on Thursdays. But now that I have to BE AT SCHOOL at 7:30, and now that "school" is not a two minute walk from my bedroom, it's way harder! This will be a welcomed change.
A week from Monday is Labor Day, which means the annual gathering of millions (almost) of my family members, most of whom I really don't know, or at least not all that well. I am actually looking forward to it. Family gatherings are much more interesting to me as an "adult" than they were when I was a kid.
Other events of September include Rob moving to a new apartment, Rock the Universe, and my birthday. The remaining days of August seem rather uneventful. I am looking forward to the next weekend that I have absolutely nothing to do. That, too, will be a welcomed change!
Aug 13, 2005
the saga continues...
Today was my first official "Saturday in the life of a teacher." I spent most of the morning (well, I guess it was really mid-day) planning out my lessons for next week. (I'll be teaching math this week. It'll be fun.) Realistically, planning lessons for 2nd grade math isn't that hard, but since I'm doing my internship, I have to do all this really detailed crap for my portfolio proving that I am capable of writing lesson plans and all that, so for the remaining 13 weeks it will be more complex than in real life. I guess it's better to be over-prepared though, rather than under-prepared.
Tonight and tomorrow morning the Sign Choir will be doing our song (Shackles) again for church. We did it last week at the Edge, and it was a lot of fun.
That's all the random information about this week that I can really think of for now. In my next post (whenever that may occur) I'll tell you about some stuff I'm looking forward to in the next few weeks. Until then, live well and take care! Grace and Peace!
Today was my first official "Saturday in the life of a teacher." I spent most of the morning (well, I guess it was really mid-day) planning out my lessons for next week. (I'll be teaching math this week. It'll be fun.) Realistically, planning lessons for 2nd grade math isn't that hard, but since I'm doing my internship, I have to do all this really detailed crap for my portfolio proving that I am capable of writing lesson plans and all that, so for the remaining 13 weeks it will be more complex than in real life. I guess it's better to be over-prepared though, rather than under-prepared.
Tonight and tomorrow morning the Sign Choir will be doing our song (Shackles) again for church. We did it last week at the Edge, and it was a lot of fun.
That's all the random information about this week that I can really think of for now. In my next post (whenever that may occur) I'll tell you about some stuff I'm looking forward to in the next few weeks. Until then, live well and take care! Grace and Peace!
Aug 7, 2005
ms.lee...
I have finished my first week of being a "teacher." My internship started last Monday, and the kids came to school on Friday. I'm really excited about it. I think it's going to be a really good experience for me. And my class seems to be a really good one. The kids are really cool, and we honestly have very few who seem to be "high-mantenance." Other than some drama two doors down from my class, the first day went really well.
This week was crazy busy. Not only was it my first week of internship, I also wound up having something scheduled for every evening. That was a little overwhelming. This coming week looks nearly as busy, but not quite. Hopefully things will slow down a little soon. I just fear that if I never get a break I'll burn out, and then I'll feel like I need to quit one of the things I'm doing, which really is not what I want to do. Anyway, I'm sure everything will work out soon. Until then, pray for my sanity! Actually, no, pray for me to feel rested. That's most important right now.
I'm really excited about Fusion for this next school year (I think it's going to be awesome), but at the same time I'm curiously looking ahead to what's next. I'm seeing some of my friends who are slightly "ahead" of me in their position in life (married, employed, etc.) who are transitioning out of our "college-age" ministry into other things, and I'm beginning to wonder if my transition time is fast-approaching as well. It's just that so many things change as you finish up college and move on to other parts of your life. A year ago I could not have begun to understand what this feels like, but now I'm starting to "get" it. I'm not worried about it... I know God has awesome things in store for me; I'm just curious. I'm excited to see where He's going to take me!
So that's all for now. I'm sure I won't get much time to post this week, so maybe I'll have something good to say by the next post. Enjoy your week!
I have finished my first week of being a "teacher." My internship started last Monday, and the kids came to school on Friday. I'm really excited about it. I think it's going to be a really good experience for me. And my class seems to be a really good one. The kids are really cool, and we honestly have very few who seem to be "high-mantenance." Other than some drama two doors down from my class, the first day went really well.
This week was crazy busy. Not only was it my first week of internship, I also wound up having something scheduled for every evening. That was a little overwhelming. This coming week looks nearly as busy, but not quite. Hopefully things will slow down a little soon. I just fear that if I never get a break I'll burn out, and then I'll feel like I need to quit one of the things I'm doing, which really is not what I want to do. Anyway, I'm sure everything will work out soon. Until then, pray for my sanity! Actually, no, pray for me to feel rested. That's most important right now.
I'm really excited about Fusion for this next school year (I think it's going to be awesome), but at the same time I'm curiously looking ahead to what's next. I'm seeing some of my friends who are slightly "ahead" of me in their position in life (married, employed, etc.) who are transitioning out of our "college-age" ministry into other things, and I'm beginning to wonder if my transition time is fast-approaching as well. It's just that so many things change as you finish up college and move on to other parts of your life. A year ago I could not have begun to understand what this feels like, but now I'm starting to "get" it. I'm not worried about it... I know God has awesome things in store for me; I'm just curious. I'm excited to see where He's going to take me!
So that's all for now. I'm sure I won't get much time to post this week, so maybe I'll have something good to say by the next post. Enjoy your week!
Jul 29, 2005
'ello...
I know, I know. I've been home all week and this is the first time I've posted. I'm a terrible person. It's just that every time I thought about doing it, I realized I had absolutely nothing of interest to say. So rather than waste your time reading it, I just didn't write it. I had you in mind. It was for your best interest. Having said all that, I still have little to say, but a post was requested, so alas, I write.
This week has been relaxing, which, of course, is nice. Rob did some serious cleaning in his room last weekend, and also moved my painting from there to his kitchen, so now that we could actually see the room and how blank it is, he and I concluded that it needed something. We had already discussed painting the room and have a color palate in mind, but that requires money and time, which neither of us really have, so that is postponed for a while. So in leiu of the walls getting a fresh coat of paint for now, I was commissioned to furnish wall hangings of my own design. (I like when I get to decorate for other people AND they leave the decisions about it up to me!) So my first project of the week was a "painting" (for lack of a better name for it) to go above his bed. By Marilyn's engenious suggestion, I purchased a 2'x4' piece of hardbord from Home Depot for a whopping $2.25, which is WAY better than the cost of a massive canvas from Michael's. (Hardboard is a thin piece of wood, much like the stuff wooden clipboards are made from.) Anyway, I covered the entire thing in newspaper --which happens to be in French, which I don't think Rob has noticed yet-- and then decopaged (sp?) random pictures on top of it... some from magazines, some that I took and played around with in photoshop. Then I painted over the whole thing with blue paint, leaving thin spots for the pictures to show through. I finished it by painting some scriptures on it in random places. I think it turned out pretty cool. It's one of those things, though, that I really had fun doing, therefore I like it, but I'm never sure if it's actually as cool as I think it is or if I just like it because it was fun to make. Anyway, Rob says he likes it, and it is now hanging on his wall, so that's all that really matters, I guess. Since hanging it, the opposite wall seems all the more blank, so my current project is something to hang on that wall. Currently, I have four re-used canvases that have been covered in newspaper (this time English) and I'm painting each a solid color. I plan to hang them all together, or possibly two-and-two to form two columns. I'll have to wait till they're on the wall to decide if they look good or if they're too plain. But as they're re-used, and I always have the option of adding more to them, it's no big deal if my vision for them is a bust. Nothing lost.
Other than painting this week, I took my FTCE last Saturday, and visited my baby niece Allison; I spent the day with my parents here in St.Augustine on Tuesday, which was nice; I got my license renewed (the new ones look funny) and had lunch with my mom on Thursday; and that's really about it, other than the usual. I read through the book of John in my quiet times this week. It was really good, but a lot of information to take in. I glanced ahead at next week's topic, and although I can't remember right now what it was, I was really excited about it, so maybe I'll have some insightful things to say about that next week. For now, I'm off to finish the canvases I think. Or maybe I'll eat a cookie instead, and watch a movie. We'll see.
I know, I know. I've been home all week and this is the first time I've posted. I'm a terrible person. It's just that every time I thought about doing it, I realized I had absolutely nothing of interest to say. So rather than waste your time reading it, I just didn't write it. I had you in mind. It was for your best interest. Having said all that, I still have little to say, but a post was requested, so alas, I write.
This week has been relaxing, which, of course, is nice. Rob did some serious cleaning in his room last weekend, and also moved my painting from there to his kitchen, so now that we could actually see the room and how blank it is, he and I concluded that it needed something. We had already discussed painting the room and have a color palate in mind, but that requires money and time, which neither of us really have, so that is postponed for a while. So in leiu of the walls getting a fresh coat of paint for now, I was commissioned to furnish wall hangings of my own design. (I like when I get to decorate for other people AND they leave the decisions about it up to me!) So my first project of the week was a "painting" (for lack of a better name for it) to go above his bed. By Marilyn's engenious suggestion, I purchased a 2'x4' piece of hardbord from Home Depot for a whopping $2.25, which is WAY better than the cost of a massive canvas from Michael's. (Hardboard is a thin piece of wood, much like the stuff wooden clipboards are made from.) Anyway, I covered the entire thing in newspaper --which happens to be in French, which I don't think Rob has noticed yet-- and then decopaged (sp?) random pictures on top of it... some from magazines, some that I took and played around with in photoshop. Then I painted over the whole thing with blue paint, leaving thin spots for the pictures to show through. I finished it by painting some scriptures on it in random places. I think it turned out pretty cool. It's one of those things, though, that I really had fun doing, therefore I like it, but I'm never sure if it's actually as cool as I think it is or if I just like it because it was fun to make. Anyway, Rob says he likes it, and it is now hanging on his wall, so that's all that really matters, I guess. Since hanging it, the opposite wall seems all the more blank, so my current project is something to hang on that wall. Currently, I have four re-used canvases that have been covered in newspaper (this time English) and I'm painting each a solid color. I plan to hang them all together, or possibly two-and-two to form two columns. I'll have to wait till they're on the wall to decide if they look good or if they're too plain. But as they're re-used, and I always have the option of adding more to them, it's no big deal if my vision for them is a bust. Nothing lost.
Other than painting this week, I took my FTCE last Saturday, and visited my baby niece Allison; I spent the day with my parents here in St.Augustine on Tuesday, which was nice; I got my license renewed (the new ones look funny) and had lunch with my mom on Thursday; and that's really about it, other than the usual. I read through the book of John in my quiet times this week. It was really good, but a lot of information to take in. I glanced ahead at next week's topic, and although I can't remember right now what it was, I was really excited about it, so maybe I'll have some insightful things to say about that next week. For now, I'm off to finish the canvases I think. Or maybe I'll eat a cookie instead, and watch a movie. We'll see.
Jul 22, 2005
updates on life...
I figured I'd write a quick post about what's going on in my life these days, for those who care or don't know. I have my second (of three) teacher certification exam tomorrow, which shouldn't be a big deal. Then I have next week totally off, then I start my internship on August 1, which is cool but a little scary. I'm glad I'm interning in the fall though because I get to do the teacher preplanning stuff, which should be quite helpful in a lot of ways. My good buddy Holly interned in the spring, and then even taught for real for a year, and still hasn't had a preplanning period, and she says she really misses that. My only regret, and it's a small one, is that the week of preplanning doesn't actually "count" for anything. Meaning that I do an extra week of internship in comparison to those who do it in the spring. But I think it'll be beneficial enough to make up for that. And what's a week really anyway? So that's that. As of August 1st, I'll be working a full-time job with no pay for 15 weeks. Oh boy.
Other than all that stuff, nothing's really particularly new. I have completed FOUR entire books this summer, and I'm in the middle of two different books of short stories. That's a HUGE accomplishment for me, for those who don't realize. I think what happened, other than boredom, was that I knew reading is a beneficial activity (I'm especially compelled to say this as a future educator) but when I looked at my own life I realized that I pretty much never read for my own enjoyment. The only books that I have read cover-to-cover in the past ten years have either been assigned to me for school or ones that I read for church or something. So I decided to become a reader. Not one of those die-hard crazy people, like a lady I saw the other day who had her book out in the movie theater before the movie started, but just a person who is in the habit of reading on a regular basis. So yeah. The titles of the ones I have finished are as follows: Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggars, Girl Meets God by Lauren F. Winner, and Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. I'm in the middle of The Harliquine Tea Set, and other short stories by Agatha Christie (which I had started reading a long time ago and then set aside), as well as Nine Stories by J.D.Salinger. I started Catcher in the Rye (also by J.D.Salinger) but didn't like it for the fact that he cursed every other line, and it was just flat out distracting from the story. His short stories are good, but some of them have abrupt or anticlimatic endings. Overall, not bad though. Agatha Christie has long been my favorite author, but I am starting to appreciate things about her that I never thought about before. For example, in contrast to Salinger and many other writers, she is equally as good at her short stories as she is at her long ones. Rob and I discussed the other day how most writers seem to have trouble switching from long to short stories or vice versa. Christie can do it though. So anyway, enough about that. I would highly recommend all four of the books I read to anyone. All but Cat's Cradle are memoire-ish. A.H.W.O.S.G. (as it is abbreviated at the top of every page of the book) also uses a few more choice words than I would actually prefer, but they come in sperts, so I was able to get over it. Besides, parts of it are completely hilarious. Girl Meets God and Blue Like Jazz are both Christian memoires, but in a really true-to-life sort of way that is very refreshing to read. So thanks for joining me for Meg's summer book review! Didn't expect this to be this long!
So other than that, the summer's been nice. Hot, but nice. Quiet times have been really good for me lately. I'm realizing more and more the importance of accountability and the joy of sharing with other people what I'm learning from God. Rob and Krissy have made these past two weeks really good. Speaking of, Rob and I have been together 8 months now, which is kinda crazy! We always talk about how sometimes it feels like forever, and then again it'll feel like we just met. It's cool how good relationships feel like that. Friendships seem to go that way too sometimes.
I'm on a fruit kick right now. I realize that I'll never actually eat as many vegetables as I should, so I figure I'll do as good as I can with fruit. I like fruit.
"The group" from church has started up playing Ultimate Frisbee again on Sunday afternoons. They've only gone out two weeks so far, neither of which have I joined in on. The first week was raining, and last week was unbearably hot. I might be a sport and play this week. But then again, if I do it once, I'll never be able to get out of it again. It's just not my thing. We'll see.
Rob and I have gotten to hang out with Holly and Kyle a bunch lately, which has been really fun. I'm so glad they're back. Holly spoke at Fusion this week, and it was incredible. It's cool to see how much God has done in her life.
After my test tomorrow, there's a chance Rob might get hooked up with a kiyak (sp?... that can't be right) so we might go out on the water for a while. That'll be fun.
I think I'm out of random things to tell you about, so I'm gonna go now. Have a relaxing weekend! Later!
I figured I'd write a quick post about what's going on in my life these days, for those who care or don't know. I have my second (of three) teacher certification exam tomorrow, which shouldn't be a big deal. Then I have next week totally off, then I start my internship on August 1, which is cool but a little scary. I'm glad I'm interning in the fall though because I get to do the teacher preplanning stuff, which should be quite helpful in a lot of ways. My good buddy Holly interned in the spring, and then even taught for real for a year, and still hasn't had a preplanning period, and she says she really misses that. My only regret, and it's a small one, is that the week of preplanning doesn't actually "count" for anything. Meaning that I do an extra week of internship in comparison to those who do it in the spring. But I think it'll be beneficial enough to make up for that. And what's a week really anyway? So that's that. As of August 1st, I'll be working a full-time job with no pay for 15 weeks. Oh boy.
Other than all that stuff, nothing's really particularly new. I have completed FOUR entire books this summer, and I'm in the middle of two different books of short stories. That's a HUGE accomplishment for me, for those who don't realize. I think what happened, other than boredom, was that I knew reading is a beneficial activity (I'm especially compelled to say this as a future educator) but when I looked at my own life I realized that I pretty much never read for my own enjoyment. The only books that I have read cover-to-cover in the past ten years have either been assigned to me for school or ones that I read for church or something. So I decided to become a reader. Not one of those die-hard crazy people, like a lady I saw the other day who had her book out in the movie theater before the movie started, but just a person who is in the habit of reading on a regular basis. So yeah. The titles of the ones I have finished are as follows: Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggars, Girl Meets God by Lauren F. Winner, and Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. I'm in the middle of The Harliquine Tea Set, and other short stories by Agatha Christie (which I had started reading a long time ago and then set aside), as well as Nine Stories by J.D.Salinger. I started Catcher in the Rye (also by J.D.Salinger) but didn't like it for the fact that he cursed every other line, and it was just flat out distracting from the story. His short stories are good, but some of them have abrupt or anticlimatic endings. Overall, not bad though. Agatha Christie has long been my favorite author, but I am starting to appreciate things about her that I never thought about before. For example, in contrast to Salinger and many other writers, she is equally as good at her short stories as she is at her long ones. Rob and I discussed the other day how most writers seem to have trouble switching from long to short stories or vice versa. Christie can do it though. So anyway, enough about that. I would highly recommend all four of the books I read to anyone. All but Cat's Cradle are memoire-ish. A.H.W.O.S.G. (as it is abbreviated at the top of every page of the book) also uses a few more choice words than I would actually prefer, but they come in sperts, so I was able to get over it. Besides, parts of it are completely hilarious. Girl Meets God and Blue Like Jazz are both Christian memoires, but in a really true-to-life sort of way that is very refreshing to read. So thanks for joining me for Meg's summer book review! Didn't expect this to be this long!
So other than that, the summer's been nice. Hot, but nice. Quiet times have been really good for me lately. I'm realizing more and more the importance of accountability and the joy of sharing with other people what I'm learning from God. Rob and Krissy have made these past two weeks really good. Speaking of, Rob and I have been together 8 months now, which is kinda crazy! We always talk about how sometimes it feels like forever, and then again it'll feel like we just met. It's cool how good relationships feel like that. Friendships seem to go that way too sometimes.
I'm on a fruit kick right now. I realize that I'll never actually eat as many vegetables as I should, so I figure I'll do as good as I can with fruit. I like fruit.
"The group" from church has started up playing Ultimate Frisbee again on Sunday afternoons. They've only gone out two weeks so far, neither of which have I joined in on. The first week was raining, and last week was unbearably hot. I might be a sport and play this week. But then again, if I do it once, I'll never be able to get out of it again. It's just not my thing. We'll see.
Rob and I have gotten to hang out with Holly and Kyle a bunch lately, which has been really fun. I'm so glad they're back. Holly spoke at Fusion this week, and it was incredible. It's cool to see how much God has done in her life.
After my test tomorrow, there's a chance Rob might get hooked up with a kiyak (sp?... that can't be right) so we might go out on the water for a while. That'll be fun.
I think I'm out of random things to tell you about, so I'm gonna go now. Have a relaxing weekend! Later!
Jul 19, 2005
take...
Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love,
at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King,
always, only for my King.
Take my love my God I pour at Thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself and I will be ever, only, all for Thee,
ever, only, all for Thee.
Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love,
at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King,
always, only for my King.
Take my love my God I pour at Thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself and I will be ever, only, all for Thee,
ever, only, all for Thee.
Jul 14, 2005
delight...
Krissy and I had a chance to talk for a while the other night about all kinds of stuff God is doing right now in our lives. It was awesome. She mentioned to me how important a particular verse has been to her lately. "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." So often we miss out on what that verse is really saying. We read it as "when you are happy being with God, He will give you everything you want." It's the whole Santa Clause image of God. If you're nice instead of naughty, you'll get good presents. That is Satan twisting this verse into something it's not. The key part of the verse is not "He will give you the desires of your heart," it's "delight yourself in the Lord." DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD! Krissy and I talked about how "delight" is such a huge and serious word that has been dramatically misused in our culture. These days, "delight" sounds like a word you use when talking about frosty-treats from Dairy Queen. But in this verse, the word being used the way it was intended, "delight yourself" means something equivalent to "make your entire life about." So the way I hear the verse is "make everything in your entire life about the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." But to get even more specific, "the desires of your heart" is often misinterpreted, also. I think when you get the first part of the verse right and your entire life becomes about God, God transforms the desires that you have. "Desires" are no longer associated with what car I can get, or what name-brand clothes I can wear, or who I can get to like me; no, these desires are passions after the things of God. He's saying that when your whole life is about God, you will desire the things God desires, and then God will knock your socks off by fulfilling those things. When you desire the things God desires, you are essentially desiring the very best. So what the verse is really saying is "make everything in your entire life aobut God, and He will give you what He knows is the absolute best for you." HOW AWESOME IS THAT!!! That's way better than "if I'm good this year, I'll get some good presents"!
So all that being said, delight yourself in the Lord today. And every day.
Krissy and I had a chance to talk for a while the other night about all kinds of stuff God is doing right now in our lives. It was awesome. She mentioned to me how important a particular verse has been to her lately. "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." So often we miss out on what that verse is really saying. We read it as "when you are happy being with God, He will give you everything you want." It's the whole Santa Clause image of God. If you're nice instead of naughty, you'll get good presents. That is Satan twisting this verse into something it's not. The key part of the verse is not "He will give you the desires of your heart," it's "delight yourself in the Lord." DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD! Krissy and I talked about how "delight" is such a huge and serious word that has been dramatically misused in our culture. These days, "delight" sounds like a word you use when talking about frosty-treats from Dairy Queen. But in this verse, the word being used the way it was intended, "delight yourself" means something equivalent to "make your entire life about." So the way I hear the verse is "make everything in your entire life about the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." But to get even more specific, "the desires of your heart" is often misinterpreted, also. I think when you get the first part of the verse right and your entire life becomes about God, God transforms the desires that you have. "Desires" are no longer associated with what car I can get, or what name-brand clothes I can wear, or who I can get to like me; no, these desires are passions after the things of God. He's saying that when your whole life is about God, you will desire the things God desires, and then God will knock your socks off by fulfilling those things. When you desire the things God desires, you are essentially desiring the very best. So what the verse is really saying is "make everything in your entire life aobut God, and He will give you what He knows is the absolute best for you." HOW AWESOME IS THAT!!! That's way better than "if I'm good this year, I'll get some good presents"!
So all that being said, delight yourself in the Lord today. And every day.
Jul 11, 2005
Jul 9, 2005
nothing better to do...
My plans for this morning got cancelled, so as I'm waiting on Rob to finish jamming with the guys at the Vine, I'll fill out this survey.
1. What time did you get up today? around 9:00, but napped when plans were cancelled
2. Diamonds or pearls? diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Mr. and Mrs. Smith
4. What is your favorite TV show? I guess The O.C.
5. What did you have for breakfast? Cheerios... actually "Publix Toasted Oats"
6. What is your middle name? Michelle
7. Favorite cuisine? Mexican or Italian
8. What foods do you dislike? green beans and various other vegetables
9. What is your favorite chip flavor? Cheddar
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? I keep coming back to Jack Johnson "In Between Dreams"... other than that, I listen to mixes mostly
11. What kind of car do you drive? 2004 Honda Civic, "Bret"
12. Favorite sandwich? I think it's called the Engenieer from Firehouse Subs... turkey with mushrooms
13. What characteristic do you despise? when a person can't speak without their comments being saturated with cynical sarcasm
14. Favorite item of clothing? Jeans (or a watch if accessories count!)
15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? probably back to London
16. What color is your bathroom? white with light-colored wood wainscotting (sp?)
17. Favorite brand of clothing? Old Navy, anything from Target
18. Where would you retire to? I don't know... maybe Tennessee
19. What was your most memorable birthday? hmm... 16th, 21st
20. Favorite sport to watch? ha
21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? I don't know
22. Person you expect to send it back first? I don't know
23. What fabric detergent do you use? Rob's :)
24. When is your birthday? September 16
25. Are you a morning person or a night person? Night
26. What is your shoe size? 8
27. Pets? not at my house... but a dog, cat, and bird at my parents' house... my dog is Toby, a Yorkie; my cat is Kitty, usually referred to as Miss Kitty, and she's enormous; my bird is a white dove named Daisy.
28. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? none that I can think of
29. What did you want to be when you were little? a singer (really little), then an optomitrist (in high school)
30. What are you today? still a student. soon to be a teacher... if I can get a job
31. What is your favorite candy? MilkyWay Midnight
32. What is your favorite flower? Orchids
My plans for this morning got cancelled, so as I'm waiting on Rob to finish jamming with the guys at the Vine, I'll fill out this survey.
1. What time did you get up today? around 9:00, but napped when plans were cancelled
2. Diamonds or pearls? diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Mr. and Mrs. Smith
4. What is your favorite TV show? I guess The O.C.
5. What did you have for breakfast? Cheerios... actually "Publix Toasted Oats"
6. What is your middle name? Michelle
7. Favorite cuisine? Mexican or Italian
8. What foods do you dislike? green beans and various other vegetables
9. What is your favorite chip flavor? Cheddar
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? I keep coming back to Jack Johnson "In Between Dreams"... other than that, I listen to mixes mostly
11. What kind of car do you drive? 2004 Honda Civic, "Bret"
12. Favorite sandwich? I think it's called the Engenieer from Firehouse Subs... turkey with mushrooms
13. What characteristic do you despise? when a person can't speak without their comments being saturated with cynical sarcasm
14. Favorite item of clothing? Jeans (or a watch if accessories count!)
15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? probably back to London
16. What color is your bathroom? white with light-colored wood wainscotting (sp?)
17. Favorite brand of clothing? Old Navy, anything from Target
18. Where would you retire to? I don't know... maybe Tennessee
19. What was your most memorable birthday? hmm... 16th, 21st
20. Favorite sport to watch? ha
21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? I don't know
22. Person you expect to send it back first? I don't know
23. What fabric detergent do you use? Rob's :)
24. When is your birthday? September 16
25. Are you a morning person or a night person? Night
26. What is your shoe size? 8
27. Pets? not at my house... but a dog, cat, and bird at my parents' house... my dog is Toby, a Yorkie; my cat is Kitty, usually referred to as Miss Kitty, and she's enormous; my bird is a white dove named Daisy.
28. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? none that I can think of
29. What did you want to be when you were little? a singer (really little), then an optomitrist (in high school)
30. What are you today? still a student. soon to be a teacher... if I can get a job
31. What is your favorite candy? MilkyWay Midnight
32. What is your favorite flower? Orchids
Jul 7, 2005
poetry...
(Yes, this is my third post today.)
When I first started at Flagler I took a British Literature class with Dr. Todd Lidh, who is an incredible, fun teacher. Anyway, in that class I discovered that I really enjoy the poetry of John Donne (1572-1631). Ever since then, I have meant to go buy a book of his poetry, especailly since I sold back my Norton Anthology of British Literature. I finally got around to doing that last week before the road trip. I think John Donne is cool because we learned a little about his life in connection with the poems he wrote: his earlier poems are about love and life and death, but all from a very "worldly" perspective. Some even a bit scandelous (sp?). But then he became a Christian and got to know God and became involved with the Church, and it is so evident in his writing. I like his earlier poems, but I especially like the ones after his conversion, mostly the Holy Sonnets. Anyway, for today, here's one of his earlier ones that I like.
Lovers' Infiniteness
If yet I have not all thy love,
Dear, I shall never have it all;
I cannot breathe one other sigh, to move,
Nor can entreat one other tear to fall,
And all my treasure, which should purchase thee,
Sighs, tears, and oaths, and letters I have spent.
Yet no more can be due to me,
Than at the bargain made was meant.
If then thy gift of love were partial,
That some to me, some should to others fall,
Dear, I shall never have thee all.
Or if then thou gavest me all,
All was but all, which thou hadst then;
But if in thy heart, since, there be or shall
New love created be, by other men,
Which have their stocks entire, and can in tears,
In sighs, in oaths, and letters outbid me,
This new love may beget new fears,
For, this love was not vow'd by thee.
And yet it was, thy gift being general,
The ground, thy heart, is mine; whatever shall
Grow there, dear, I should have it all.
Yet I would not have all yet,
He that hath all can have no more,
And since my love doth every day admit
New growth, thou shouldst have new rewards in store;
Thou canst not every day give me thy heart,
If thou canst give it, then thou never gavest it:
Love's riddles are, that though thy heart depart,
It stays at home, and thou with losing savest it:
But we will have a way more liberal,
Than changing hearts, to join them, so we shall
Be one, and one another's all.
(Yes, this is my third post today.)
When I first started at Flagler I took a British Literature class with Dr. Todd Lidh, who is an incredible, fun teacher. Anyway, in that class I discovered that I really enjoy the poetry of John Donne (1572-1631). Ever since then, I have meant to go buy a book of his poetry, especailly since I sold back my Norton Anthology of British Literature. I finally got around to doing that last week before the road trip. I think John Donne is cool because we learned a little about his life in connection with the poems he wrote: his earlier poems are about love and life and death, but all from a very "worldly" perspective. Some even a bit scandelous (sp?). But then he became a Christian and got to know God and became involved with the Church, and it is so evident in his writing. I like his earlier poems, but I especially like the ones after his conversion, mostly the Holy Sonnets. Anyway, for today, here's one of his earlier ones that I like.
Lovers' Infiniteness
If yet I have not all thy love,
Dear, I shall never have it all;
I cannot breathe one other sigh, to move,
Nor can entreat one other tear to fall,
And all my treasure, which should purchase thee,
Sighs, tears, and oaths, and letters I have spent.
Yet no more can be due to me,
Than at the bargain made was meant.
If then thy gift of love were partial,
That some to me, some should to others fall,
Dear, I shall never have thee all.
Or if then thou gavest me all,
All was but all, which thou hadst then;
But if in thy heart, since, there be or shall
New love created be, by other men,
Which have their stocks entire, and can in tears,
In sighs, in oaths, and letters outbid me,
This new love may beget new fears,
For, this love was not vow'd by thee.
And yet it was, thy gift being general,
The ground, thy heart, is mine; whatever shall
Grow there, dear, I should have it all.
Yet I would not have all yet,
He that hath all can have no more,
And since my love doth every day admit
New growth, thou shouldst have new rewards in store;
Thou canst not every day give me thy heart,
If thou canst give it, then thou never gavest it:
Love's riddles are, that though thy heart depart,
It stays at home, and thou with losing savest it:
But we will have a way more liberal,
Than changing hearts, to join them, so we shall
Be one, and one another's all.
first and last...
Okay, so I'm the last one to do this survey, but clearly I have nothing to do today, so here it is.
Firsts:
First best friend: Allison Adams, first and always
First car: 1994 Nissan Sentra. He was good to me.
First date: What you think is a date at one point in your life doesn't necessarily seem like a date later in life. So here are the options: Eric in 5th grade... I invited him to a dinner at my school... how cheesy. Daniel in 8th grade (he was much older than me... three years)... various places during our three-month pseudo-dating relationship. Then there's the unofficial going-on-a-date-with-your-good-friend thing where it's a date but without any romantic aspect (aside from maybe an unmentioned two-way crush)... 11th grade with Adam (also three years older) to Ichetucknee with friends Jessie and Daniel... even though not romantic, definitely the best one up until that point. FINALLY the first thing actually even resembling a real date was Junior year of college with Andrew (this time younger... that didn't work)... we went to Jonny Carinos with Greg and Laci. THE END.
First kiss: Andrew. (I got a late start. I'm glad.)
First break-up by you: long story
First break-up by them: Eric
First screen name: meglee786 (my origional aol account... i was the last person on the planet to get the internet at my house!)
First self purchased album: haha... i think it was the Lion King soundtrack! no joke!
First funeral: One of my dad's uncles I think
First pets: Sweetpea (white mutt that looked like a small greyhound), and Cindy (mom's beagle-mix)
First piercing/tattoo: ears / no tattoos, although I consider one some days... it'll never happen though
First true love: Rob Stone :)
First enemy: Nicole Goodman... teacher's pet... everyone hated her
First big trip: what's big? North Carolina when I was like 6 with my parents. Chicago in 9th grade with band. First really big trip, and first time flying: London and Paris with choir, 11th grade.
First musician you remember hearing in your house: Everybody else had cool answers to this. I think mine was probably the Gathers, or some other Southern Gospel music group.
LASTS!!
Last car ride: last night, home from Fusion
Last kiss: last night
Last Hookup: Depends on your definition of hookup... none, in the "adult" sense of the term.
Last good cry: probably a few weeks ago when I was really sick
Last library book checked out: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggars, along with a Time photography book and a random little book called Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same where the creator/author made little diaramas with toy chickens and made up a one-sentance story to go with each of them. It was pretty dang funny.
Last movie seen: I can't keep track anymore. In the theater, I think it was Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Last beverage drink: water
Last food consumed: leftover pizza and a little chocolate candy
Last crush: Robert Stone
Last phone call: I called Ann from work this morning to find out when I'm supposed to work
Last time showered: yesterday... i haven't changed out of my pjs yet today
Last shoes worn: My black and pink Airwalks last night
Last cd played: last night in my car, Jack Johnson's newest (can't think of the name right now), but woke up to Mae
Last item bought: umm... a sandwich wrap from Blimpie yesterday
Last annoyance: the state of our kitchen yesterday
Last disappointment: remembering yet another girl I graduated with who has a baby
Last time scolded: can't think of anything for scolded, but nagged by my mom on Tuesday night about school finances
Last shirt worn: wearing my Fusion conversation-starter question T-shirt
Last website visited: Megan Smith's livejournal
Okay, so I'm the last one to do this survey, but clearly I have nothing to do today, so here it is.
Firsts:
First best friend: Allison Adams, first and always
First car: 1994 Nissan Sentra. He was good to me.
First date: What you think is a date at one point in your life doesn't necessarily seem like a date later in life. So here are the options: Eric in 5th grade... I invited him to a dinner at my school... how cheesy. Daniel in 8th grade (he was much older than me... three years)... various places during our three-month pseudo-dating relationship. Then there's the unofficial going-on-a-date-with-your-good-friend thing where it's a date but without any romantic aspect (aside from maybe an unmentioned two-way crush)... 11th grade with Adam (also three years older) to Ichetucknee with friends Jessie and Daniel... even though not romantic, definitely the best one up until that point. FINALLY the first thing actually even resembling a real date was Junior year of college with Andrew (this time younger... that didn't work)... we went to Jonny Carinos with Greg and Laci. THE END.
First kiss: Andrew. (I got a late start. I'm glad.)
First break-up by you: long story
First break-up by them: Eric
First screen name: meglee786 (my origional aol account... i was the last person on the planet to get the internet at my house!)
First self purchased album: haha... i think it was the Lion King soundtrack! no joke!
First funeral: One of my dad's uncles I think
First pets: Sweetpea (white mutt that looked like a small greyhound), and Cindy (mom's beagle-mix)
First piercing/tattoo: ears / no tattoos, although I consider one some days... it'll never happen though
First true love: Rob Stone :)
First enemy: Nicole Goodman... teacher's pet... everyone hated her
First big trip: what's big? North Carolina when I was like 6 with my parents. Chicago in 9th grade with band. First really big trip, and first time flying: London and Paris with choir, 11th grade.
First musician you remember hearing in your house: Everybody else had cool answers to this. I think mine was probably the Gathers, or some other Southern Gospel music group.
LASTS!!
Last car ride: last night, home from Fusion
Last kiss: last night
Last Hookup: Depends on your definition of hookup... none, in the "adult" sense of the term.
Last good cry: probably a few weeks ago when I was really sick
Last library book checked out: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggars, along with a Time photography book and a random little book called Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same where the creator/author made little diaramas with toy chickens and made up a one-sentance story to go with each of them. It was pretty dang funny.
Last movie seen: I can't keep track anymore. In the theater, I think it was Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Last beverage drink: water
Last food consumed: leftover pizza and a little chocolate candy
Last crush: Robert Stone
Last phone call: I called Ann from work this morning to find out when I'm supposed to work
Last time showered: yesterday... i haven't changed out of my pjs yet today
Last shoes worn: My black and pink Airwalks last night
Last cd played: last night in my car, Jack Johnson's newest (can't think of the name right now), but woke up to Mae
Last item bought: umm... a sandwich wrap from Blimpie yesterday
Last annoyance: the state of our kitchen yesterday
Last disappointment: remembering yet another girl I graduated with who has a baby
Last time scolded: can't think of anything for scolded, but nagged by my mom on Tuesday night about school finances
Last shirt worn: wearing my Fusion conversation-starter question T-shirt
Last website visited: Megan Smith's livejournal
things i forgot...
Last night as I was journaling a similar entry as the last one in my real journal, I realized I left out a few details that are worth mentioning. First of all, on Saturday I shot a rifle. It was the very first time I'd ever shot a gun, and I was admittedly a little nervous about it, not knowing how easy or hard it would be to hit my target. The six of us had a target shooting challenge where the winner was promised $20. We had small paper bullseyes attached to a tree stump to aim at. We each took two practice shots, and then we got six shots each. The targets have a bullseye and then concentric circles labled 1-5 extending outward. The goal was to get all shots inside the 2 or better. While I did not win by any means, I did manage to get all my shots in the 2 to 3 range, save one stray shot that hit the lower corner of the paper. Maybe it's a little hick to say, but it was really fun.
Rob and I have started watching the first season DVDs of "One Tree Hill" so we squeezed in as many episodes as we could while we were at the cabin. It's a pretty good show as far as high school dramas go, but not as good as "The O.C." in my opinion.
One of my favorite things about Saturday was driving the mountain roads with windows down and worship music blaring. There's something special to me about being able to experience God's beautiful creation while singing praises to Him. The weather was perfect and it was just a wonderful experience.
What I miss most about the time I spent in Georgia last summer is being able to watch the fireflies at dusk every day. I was thrilled to be able to see them again this weekend. They really amaze me. I'm convinced God made them just to give us pleasure.
Well, that's about it for the trip. Since I've been back in town I've been trying to get in touch with my work (which only consists of the store owner and one other lady) to find out what days I'm supposed to work. I finally got hold of "the other lady" (Ann) this morning, and clearly there was some miscommunication because I was supposed to go in yesterday but didn't know, and she didn't know that I was out of town on Monday (although the owner knew) so the store hasn't been open since Sunday (we're closed on Tuesdays anyway). Woops. I figure (a) it's not my fault because the owner lost the calendar so we couldn't adequately plan ahead last week, and (b) it's not that big of a deal because I opened two extra days last week while the owner was out of town. So that's the minimal amount of drama that's going on in my life this week. So I'm only working on Friday I guess. Anyway. Tonight will be my soon-to-be world-famous enchiladas for me and Rob. Yummy. I'll post again when exciting things happen.
Oh... ps, I'm reading the book Girl Meets God and it's really, really good. I highly recommend it. It's about a girl who is born to a Jewish father and Southern Baptist mother, neither of whom are "practicing." When she's old enough to decide, she converts to Orthodox Judaism, but later feels God's call on her life and converts to Christianity. The book is basically an honest look at her faith struggle. It's so good. Anyone could relate to her struggle on so many levels.
Later.
Last night as I was journaling a similar entry as the last one in my real journal, I realized I left out a few details that are worth mentioning. First of all, on Saturday I shot a rifle. It was the very first time I'd ever shot a gun, and I was admittedly a little nervous about it, not knowing how easy or hard it would be to hit my target. The six of us had a target shooting challenge where the winner was promised $20. We had small paper bullseyes attached to a tree stump to aim at. We each took two practice shots, and then we got six shots each. The targets have a bullseye and then concentric circles labled 1-5 extending outward. The goal was to get all shots inside the 2 or better. While I did not win by any means, I did manage to get all my shots in the 2 to 3 range, save one stray shot that hit the lower corner of the paper. Maybe it's a little hick to say, but it was really fun.
Rob and I have started watching the first season DVDs of "One Tree Hill" so we squeezed in as many episodes as we could while we were at the cabin. It's a pretty good show as far as high school dramas go, but not as good as "The O.C." in my opinion.
One of my favorite things about Saturday was driving the mountain roads with windows down and worship music blaring. There's something special to me about being able to experience God's beautiful creation while singing praises to Him. The weather was perfect and it was just a wonderful experience.
What I miss most about the time I spent in Georgia last summer is being able to watch the fireflies at dusk every day. I was thrilled to be able to see them again this weekend. They really amaze me. I'm convinced God made them just to give us pleasure.
Well, that's about it for the trip. Since I've been back in town I've been trying to get in touch with my work (which only consists of the store owner and one other lady) to find out what days I'm supposed to work. I finally got hold of "the other lady" (Ann) this morning, and clearly there was some miscommunication because I was supposed to go in yesterday but didn't know, and she didn't know that I was out of town on Monday (although the owner knew) so the store hasn't been open since Sunday (we're closed on Tuesdays anyway). Woops. I figure (a) it's not my fault because the owner lost the calendar so we couldn't adequately plan ahead last week, and (b) it's not that big of a deal because I opened two extra days last week while the owner was out of town. So that's the minimal amount of drama that's going on in my life this week. So I'm only working on Friday I guess. Anyway. Tonight will be my soon-to-be world-famous enchiladas for me and Rob. Yummy. I'll post again when exciting things happen.
Oh... ps, I'm reading the book Girl Meets God and it's really, really good. I highly recommend it. It's about a girl who is born to a Jewish father and Southern Baptist mother, neither of whom are "practicing." When she's old enough to decide, she converts to Orthodox Judaism, but later feels God's call on her life and converts to Christianity. The book is basically an honest look at her faith struggle. It's so good. Anyone could relate to her struggle on so many levels.
Later.
Jul 6, 2005
i'm back...
Sorry for the lack of posting recently. I was out of town for a Fourth of July vacation with Rob. We went up to spend some time with his family in their cabin in Suches, Georgia. We left on Friday after we both got done with work and stayed through till Tuesday afternoon. It was a wonderful time of relaxation and fun. The cabin is up on a mountain, so the last leg of the trip there (around 2:30 am) was a winding one. I spotted several deer, but Rob was unable to catch sight of them, as he was more importantly watching the road. We were greeted by Grandma Jessie and Mrs. Barbie (Rob's mom) and headed directly for bed as soon as we walked in the door. The next morning Rob's Uncle Keith arrived prior to the two of us waking up. Saturday was spent seeing the area, and more or less just bumming around the fire and the cabin. Sunday we attended a church service at the lake, which is apparently a regular event for those who are staying on the mountain. We then headed down to the valley, Dahlonega, to get lunch at a Mexican restaurant. The afternoon was relaxing, then later that evening we went to the Woody's home (long time friends of the family) for a barbecue. It was a good time. It was cool to see a bunch of families who have been friends for an incredibly long time all together and enjoying each other's company. Probably the coolest part of the evening was towards the end when everyone gathered inside around the piano and we all sang old hymns together for hours. It's such a connecting thing to me when families sing together. It was really neat. Monday, the Fourth, we said goodbye to Grandma Jessie and Keith as they were leaving, and then the four of us went into Dahlonega for "Family Day" where they have a bunch of tent vendors and what-not set up in the town square. I think the event was smaller than it normally is, but it was still fun. And while there, Rob surprised me with a really nice Willow Tree figurine that he says reminds him of us. I really like it... it was really sweet of him. We went back up the mountain and waited for the rain that had settled in again to stop, but later in the evening we went to see the fireworks, but again had to make accomodations for the rain. The fireworks were entertaining, if nothing else, because it's at the local school and they set up all the fireworks on their outdoor basketball court and a bunch of guys run around and light them by hand, all while this countriest-of country man talked to the crowd on his karaoke-type microphone. I was certain one of the men with lighters was going to die before the night was over. Especially when they had to do an all-of-a-sudden finalie, setting off hundreds of fireworks at once to get them finished before the rain began to pour. After getting home and drying off, Rob and I played team Rummy with his parents (girls v. guys) and had a great time laughing and joking around. He and I both agreed it was probably the best time of the trip. Tuesdsay we ate lunch at the Mexican place again and then headed for home. It was a great trip. I would close this post out with a better summary statement, but I'm about to be late for my leadership meeting, so I have to go. Later.
Sorry for the lack of posting recently. I was out of town for a Fourth of July vacation with Rob. We went up to spend some time with his family in their cabin in Suches, Georgia. We left on Friday after we both got done with work and stayed through till Tuesday afternoon. It was a wonderful time of relaxation and fun. The cabin is up on a mountain, so the last leg of the trip there (around 2:30 am) was a winding one. I spotted several deer, but Rob was unable to catch sight of them, as he was more importantly watching the road. We were greeted by Grandma Jessie and Mrs. Barbie (Rob's mom) and headed directly for bed as soon as we walked in the door. The next morning Rob's Uncle Keith arrived prior to the two of us waking up. Saturday was spent seeing the area, and more or less just bumming around the fire and the cabin. Sunday we attended a church service at the lake, which is apparently a regular event for those who are staying on the mountain. We then headed down to the valley, Dahlonega, to get lunch at a Mexican restaurant. The afternoon was relaxing, then later that evening we went to the Woody's home (long time friends of the family) for a barbecue. It was a good time. It was cool to see a bunch of families who have been friends for an incredibly long time all together and enjoying each other's company. Probably the coolest part of the evening was towards the end when everyone gathered inside around the piano and we all sang old hymns together for hours. It's such a connecting thing to me when families sing together. It was really neat. Monday, the Fourth, we said goodbye to Grandma Jessie and Keith as they were leaving, and then the four of us went into Dahlonega for "Family Day" where they have a bunch of tent vendors and what-not set up in the town square. I think the event was smaller than it normally is, but it was still fun. And while there, Rob surprised me with a really nice Willow Tree figurine that he says reminds him of us. I really like it... it was really sweet of him. We went back up the mountain and waited for the rain that had settled in again to stop, but later in the evening we went to see the fireworks, but again had to make accomodations for the rain. The fireworks were entertaining, if nothing else, because it's at the local school and they set up all the fireworks on their outdoor basketball court and a bunch of guys run around and light them by hand, all while this countriest-of country man talked to the crowd on his karaoke-type microphone. I was certain one of the men with lighters was going to die before the night was over. Especially when they had to do an all-of-a-sudden finalie, setting off hundreds of fireworks at once to get them finished before the rain began to pour. After getting home and drying off, Rob and I played team Rummy with his parents (girls v. guys) and had a great time laughing and joking around. He and I both agreed it was probably the best time of the trip. Tuesdsay we ate lunch at the Mexican place again and then headed for home. It was a great trip. I would close this post out with a better summary statement, but I'm about to be late for my leadership meeting, so I have to go. Later.
Jun 27, 2005
so here's my update...
I know I haven't posted in quite some time. I don't get a chance to post on days that I work, and in the last week my days off have either been spent catching up on sleep or doing things slightly more important than posting on my blog. Anyway, just wanted to write a quick post about what we talked about in Bible study tonight. Katie wrapped up Ephesians for us (at least I think it's wrapped up... there might be one more). We talked about the armor of God, but in a different way than I have ever thought about it. The biggest thing that stuck out to me was that Christ IS our armor. We receive the armor/Christ at the point of salvation. We don't have to ask for the armor on a daily basis; the deal is we have to use it. Another thing that stuck out was that it's not our job to defeat satan... that's God's job in God's time. Our job is to defend ourselves against him. That's encouraging! So anyway, that's really all I have to say. I'll try to post again soon with random updates on what's going on in my life, but I don't feel like writing much more tonight. So until next time, grace and peace!
I know I haven't posted in quite some time. I don't get a chance to post on days that I work, and in the last week my days off have either been spent catching up on sleep or doing things slightly more important than posting on my blog. Anyway, just wanted to write a quick post about what we talked about in Bible study tonight. Katie wrapped up Ephesians for us (at least I think it's wrapped up... there might be one more). We talked about the armor of God, but in a different way than I have ever thought about it. The biggest thing that stuck out to me was that Christ IS our armor. We receive the armor/Christ at the point of salvation. We don't have to ask for the armor on a daily basis; the deal is we have to use it. Another thing that stuck out was that it's not our job to defeat satan... that's God's job in God's time. Our job is to defend ourselves against him. That's encouraging! So anyway, that's really all I have to say. I'll try to post again soon with random updates on what's going on in my life, but I don't feel like writing much more tonight. So until next time, grace and peace!
Jun 19, 2005
blueberries...
The blueberries are ripe! I picked some with my dad today when I was at my parents' house. There are few things in life that are better than ripe, fresh-from-the-bush blueberries.
Today was a good day. I especially enjoyed Pastor Ron's Father's Day sermon this morning. Back on Mother's Day he preached on Ephesians 5:22-24, which is about wives submitting to their husbands, which may seem like a risky Mother's Day topic, but he promised that the guys would "get it" on Father's day. So today was 5:25-32, talking about "husbands love your wives." It was really good. Everything he said was clear and specific and the Truth of God. As I was listening to him speak, I was thinking how cool it is that God has so blessed me with awesome examples of Godly couples living out the commands of Ephesians 5. Specifically, I was thinking of Billy and Phyllis Robshaw. (They were sitting in front of me, but I would have thought of them anyway!) It's cool to be involved so closely in ministry with them because we get to see them at all different times, even voulnerable times, yet their example has never waivered. They are a faimily that truly has a grasp on the love of God and the role that it sould play in their relationships with one another. Krissy and I were talking about this the other day. We said that you can go through life seeing families that are there for each other and provide for each other, etc., and think "oh, that's a loving family." But then you see a family that is just overflowing with love because it is the love that comes from a passion for Christ, like the Robshaws, and you think "Wow! That's what love is!" It gives you a totally new perspective on things. It's a cool system God has planned out for us in Ephesians, if we would just believe Him and follow it. People always get caught up on the "wives, submit to your husbands part," which I just don't get. Someone said once, and I have always believed, that it is the easiest and most fulfilling thing in the world to submit to the one who is loving you with the kind of love described in verses 25-32. What more could a girl want than to be loved by a man the way CHRIST HIMSELF loved the church! We couldn't possibly come up with a better plan than this one... which is why the world is so confused. They keep trying to make things work using a different plan, when this is what we are designed for. Anyway, it was a really encouraging sermon. Interestingly, we're doing that passage at Bible study tomorrow.
The blueberries are ripe! I picked some with my dad today when I was at my parents' house. There are few things in life that are better than ripe, fresh-from-the-bush blueberries.
Today was a good day. I especially enjoyed Pastor Ron's Father's Day sermon this morning. Back on Mother's Day he preached on Ephesians 5:22-24, which is about wives submitting to their husbands, which may seem like a risky Mother's Day topic, but he promised that the guys would "get it" on Father's day. So today was 5:25-32, talking about "husbands love your wives." It was really good. Everything he said was clear and specific and the Truth of God. As I was listening to him speak, I was thinking how cool it is that God has so blessed me with awesome examples of Godly couples living out the commands of Ephesians 5. Specifically, I was thinking of Billy and Phyllis Robshaw. (They were sitting in front of me, but I would have thought of them anyway!) It's cool to be involved so closely in ministry with them because we get to see them at all different times, even voulnerable times, yet their example has never waivered. They are a faimily that truly has a grasp on the love of God and the role that it sould play in their relationships with one another. Krissy and I were talking about this the other day. We said that you can go through life seeing families that are there for each other and provide for each other, etc., and think "oh, that's a loving family." But then you see a family that is just overflowing with love because it is the love that comes from a passion for Christ, like the Robshaws, and you think "Wow! That's what love is!" It gives you a totally new perspective on things. It's a cool system God has planned out for us in Ephesians, if we would just believe Him and follow it. People always get caught up on the "wives, submit to your husbands part," which I just don't get. Someone said once, and I have always believed, that it is the easiest and most fulfilling thing in the world to submit to the one who is loving you with the kind of love described in verses 25-32. What more could a girl want than to be loved by a man the way CHRIST HIMSELF loved the church! We couldn't possibly come up with a better plan than this one... which is why the world is so confused. They keep trying to make things work using a different plan, when this is what we are designed for. Anyway, it was a really encouraging sermon. Interestingly, we're doing that passage at Bible study tomorrow.
Jun 16, 2005
sick...
Yeah, I haven't written in nearly a week because I've been lying on my couch wishing someone would shoot me and put me out of my misery. I started getting a soar throat last Thursday, but as I am prone to allergy problems, I tried to wait it out for a few days while taking allergy medicine to see if I would get better. But alas, I did not. It got worse and worse, until Tuesday morning I woke up knowing that I needed to see a doctor or my throat was going to close up and I would die in my sleep (okay, maybe a little over-dramatic). So I called my mom to find out which doctors I could see in St.Augustine that would be covered by my insurance. From this initial phone call of the morning, talking was far too much of a chore. I struggled to make my words comprehensible. I was miserable already, but I proceeded to spend the majority of the day making a rediculous amount of phone calls. Mom gave me several doctors to call. I called them and either they didn't take my insurance or weren't taking new patients or whatever. I was frustrated. I called Mom back and she gave me more names. I called them. After a few more with no luck, and one that couldn't see me for possibly 48 hours, I finally found one who could get me in that afternoon. I was relieved. So I went to my appointment, and after sitting in the wating room for nearly an hour, the receptionist called me up to the desk to tell me that she had called my insurance company and that my coverage had been terminated last September. I'm supposed to be covered until I graduate. So I called my mom, who called the insurance company. Turns out it is our responsibility to inform my dad's work each semester that I am in fact still a full time student. They, in turn, are supposed to inform the insurance company. We were unaware of any of this. So I couldn't use my insurance, had to pay for the doctor's visit, and for my prescription. It was crazy. So to wrap up this long story, I'm on an antibiodic for now and waiting to see if it helps. The results from my thraot culture should be back tomorrow, so if anything is wrong, they will give me a call. So far, improvement in the way I feel has been slow. I think I'm starting to feel a little better today. It's hard to say because the pain sort of shifts from one place to another. First my tonsils, then my ears, then I just can't swallow. But for the moment, other than being rediculously congested, I feel relatively okay.
Sorry for this being a complaint post. This has been my week. I'm fairly confident I'll start getting better soon. Until then, more movies, soup, and advil.
Yeah, I haven't written in nearly a week because I've been lying on my couch wishing someone would shoot me and put me out of my misery. I started getting a soar throat last Thursday, but as I am prone to allergy problems, I tried to wait it out for a few days while taking allergy medicine to see if I would get better. But alas, I did not. It got worse and worse, until Tuesday morning I woke up knowing that I needed to see a doctor or my throat was going to close up and I would die in my sleep (okay, maybe a little over-dramatic). So I called my mom to find out which doctors I could see in St.Augustine that would be covered by my insurance. From this initial phone call of the morning, talking was far too much of a chore. I struggled to make my words comprehensible. I was miserable already, but I proceeded to spend the majority of the day making a rediculous amount of phone calls. Mom gave me several doctors to call. I called them and either they didn't take my insurance or weren't taking new patients or whatever. I was frustrated. I called Mom back and she gave me more names. I called them. After a few more with no luck, and one that couldn't see me for possibly 48 hours, I finally found one who could get me in that afternoon. I was relieved. So I went to my appointment, and after sitting in the wating room for nearly an hour, the receptionist called me up to the desk to tell me that she had called my insurance company and that my coverage had been terminated last September. I'm supposed to be covered until I graduate. So I called my mom, who called the insurance company. Turns out it is our responsibility to inform my dad's work each semester that I am in fact still a full time student. They, in turn, are supposed to inform the insurance company. We were unaware of any of this. So I couldn't use my insurance, had to pay for the doctor's visit, and for my prescription. It was crazy. So to wrap up this long story, I'm on an antibiodic for now and waiting to see if it helps. The results from my thraot culture should be back tomorrow, so if anything is wrong, they will give me a call. So far, improvement in the way I feel has been slow. I think I'm starting to feel a little better today. It's hard to say because the pain sort of shifts from one place to another. First my tonsils, then my ears, then I just can't swallow. But for the moment, other than being rediculously congested, I feel relatively okay.
Sorry for this being a complaint post. This has been my week. I'm fairly confident I'll start getting better soon. Until then, more movies, soup, and advil.
Jun 10, 2005
good stuff...
So here's a few points of cool news that I thought I'd share with you today. First, I helped Rob rearrange his place last night (it looks pretty good, if I may say so) in preperation for the good news of today, which is that Kyle and Holly are moving down today. Kyle will be staying with Rob for about a month and a half, and Holly will be staying with Kathy in her new house (I'm not sure for how long). It'll be nice to have our Holly back after a year of her being away, and Kyle will be a nice addition to our group, as well. Other cool news (indirectly, as it doesn't affect me at all) Krissy's friend, whose name I forget, stopped by the house yesterday to inform Krissy that she recently found out she's pregnant. It's cool to see the utter excitement and joy that a new-mom-to-be experiences. Lastly, I start working at an art gallery downtown on Monday. Mullet Beach gallery... as in the fish, not the hair style. I wish I had thought to go talk to the lady sooner. I had spoken with her over winter break and was going to work for her then, but our schedules didn't work out, and then Greg informed me the other day that she was still looking for someone to work for her for the summer. Until he mentioned it, the thought hadn't even crossed my mind. So I stopped in yesterday, but the owner wasn't there, so I went back today. Our conversation was basically,
I left out a few details, but that's about how quickly I got the job. That beats the heck out of this stupid interview I've been waiting for. Sure, the other job would have been more hours and better pay, but they keep putting me off again and again, so I'm not making any money sitting around waiting on them.
So that's all the news. Tonight Rob and I are making dinner for Holly and Kyle, and then there's Continuation at my house. I'm looking forward to Continuation tonight because last night as I was doing my quiet time I asked God to show me what we should focus on tonight, and the scripture I read seems really appropriate for our group and current situations. I think it's a word we could all use right now, so hopefully it is received well and God uses it. I'm confident He will. His Word never returns void.
Grace and Peace.
So here's a few points of cool news that I thought I'd share with you today. First, I helped Rob rearrange his place last night (it looks pretty good, if I may say so) in preperation for the good news of today, which is that Kyle and Holly are moving down today. Kyle will be staying with Rob for about a month and a half, and Holly will be staying with Kathy in her new house (I'm not sure for how long). It'll be nice to have our Holly back after a year of her being away, and Kyle will be a nice addition to our group, as well. Other cool news (indirectly, as it doesn't affect me at all) Krissy's friend, whose name I forget, stopped by the house yesterday to inform Krissy that she recently found out she's pregnant. It's cool to see the utter excitement and joy that a new-mom-to-be experiences. Lastly, I start working at an art gallery downtown on Monday. Mullet Beach gallery... as in the fish, not the hair style. I wish I had thought to go talk to the lady sooner. I had spoken with her over winter break and was going to work for her then, but our schedules didn't work out, and then Greg informed me the other day that she was still looking for someone to work for her for the summer. Until he mentioned it, the thought hadn't even crossed my mind. So I stopped in yesterday, but the owner wasn't there, so I went back today. Our conversation was basically,
"Hi, I'm Megan. We spoke before. Do you still need some help for the summer?"
"Yes, I could use someone 3-4 days a week. When can you start?"
"Immediately."
"Okay, see you Monday at 11:00."
I left out a few details, but that's about how quickly I got the job. That beats the heck out of this stupid interview I've been waiting for. Sure, the other job would have been more hours and better pay, but they keep putting me off again and again, so I'm not making any money sitting around waiting on them.
So that's all the news. Tonight Rob and I are making dinner for Holly and Kyle, and then there's Continuation at my house. I'm looking forward to Continuation tonight because last night as I was doing my quiet time I asked God to show me what we should focus on tonight, and the scripture I read seems really appropriate for our group and current situations. I think it's a word we could all use right now, so hopefully it is received well and God uses it. I'm confident He will. His Word never returns void.
Grace and Peace.
Jun 9, 2005
missing...
I was just sitting here in "the nook" at my house and I started realizing several things that I miss. Not in a really bad "now-I'm-depressed" sort of way, just things I miss having around or what-not. I miss Christina, with her "mom" speeches. I miss Jess, with her rolling up the rug and dancing in the living room. I miss our banner paper being on our wall for everyone to write on. I miss the hymns I sang growing up. (Growing up I would have killed for a decent praise chorus... I guess it's hard to get the best of both worlds.) I desperately miss singing in a really good choir... or any choir at all, for that matter. I miss playing in band/orchestra, which is something I never thougt I'd say when I was in it. For the last two, I think what it is that I miss most, aside from just enjoying the way 40-300 musicians sound together, is the challange of learning new music. Often difficult music. The closest I've come lately to having to think hard at all about music was sight-reading the alto line for the verses of "Jesus Paid it All" last Wednesday when I sang it in church with Rob and the band. And even then, I basically knew what it was supposed to sound like. Okay, so that turned into a bit of a tangent. Back to the list. I miss the excitement brought by the ice cream truck when I was a kid. And it was cool how nice our ice cream man was. If there was a big group of us kids buying ice cream and one kid didn't have any money, he would give him a popsicle. That's nice.
Speaking of frozen treats, I just finished one of my famous banana-strawberry smoothies. It was delicious! Very satisfying after my walk to and from downtown. It's hot out! Also, Tuesday night Rob and I went to Cold Stone after dinner and I had the Apple Pie A-la-Mode... it was incredible! I do believe it's the best combination I've had from Cold Stone. Wade, our friend from the youth group, works there and he recommended to me that I should have it made with French Vanilla instead of Sweet Cream, so I followed his advice, and it was fabulous. So if anyone decides to try it out, I would recommend the same.
Okay, I have nothing else even remotely interesting to say, so I'll stop here. Have a fabulous Thursday afternoon! Peace!
I was just sitting here in "the nook" at my house and I started realizing several things that I miss. Not in a really bad "now-I'm-depressed" sort of way, just things I miss having around or what-not. I miss Christina, with her "mom" speeches. I miss Jess, with her rolling up the rug and dancing in the living room. I miss our banner paper being on our wall for everyone to write on. I miss the hymns I sang growing up. (Growing up I would have killed for a decent praise chorus... I guess it's hard to get the best of both worlds.) I desperately miss singing in a really good choir... or any choir at all, for that matter. I miss playing in band/orchestra, which is something I never thougt I'd say when I was in it. For the last two, I think what it is that I miss most, aside from just enjoying the way 40-300 musicians sound together, is the challange of learning new music. Often difficult music. The closest I've come lately to having to think hard at all about music was sight-reading the alto line for the verses of "Jesus Paid it All" last Wednesday when I sang it in church with Rob and the band. And even then, I basically knew what it was supposed to sound like. Okay, so that turned into a bit of a tangent. Back to the list. I miss the excitement brought by the ice cream truck when I was a kid. And it was cool how nice our ice cream man was. If there was a big group of us kids buying ice cream and one kid didn't have any money, he would give him a popsicle. That's nice.
Speaking of frozen treats, I just finished one of my famous banana-strawberry smoothies. It was delicious! Very satisfying after my walk to and from downtown. It's hot out! Also, Tuesday night Rob and I went to Cold Stone after dinner and I had the Apple Pie A-la-Mode... it was incredible! I do believe it's the best combination I've had from Cold Stone. Wade, our friend from the youth group, works there and he recommended to me that I should have it made with French Vanilla instead of Sweet Cream, so I followed his advice, and it was fabulous. So if anyone decides to try it out, I would recommend the same.
Okay, I have nothing else even remotely interesting to say, so I'll stop here. Have a fabulous Thursday afternoon! Peace!
