Washing Machine Opinions (Dryers Too!)

Well it is official. My washer has gone the way of all the washers...hopefully to appliance heaven. Cause of death was an irreparable hole in the basket/basin/tub/WHATEVER it's called. The thing that holds the water.

So now I move forward to the decision making process of what to buy. I have never before purchased a washer and/or dryer, so this is a very new thing for me. I spent about two hours online tonight reading reviews of different brands and I am not officially more confused than EVER.

I'm not getting some super-de-duper get-the-clothes-out-of-your-closet-and-fold-them-when-it's-done sort of laundry system. Just the basics. I'm open to any opinions, good and bad.

Apparently You CAN Take the Country out of a Girl

You know...you can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of a girl?

Saturday I went to my parents' house to wash my last load of laundry (stupid broken washer....rrrr...) and while it washed, I went into Greentown to catch up with one of my friends. After we finished gabbing, I went back to my parents' house, picked up my laundry, and headed home. I was on the phone with my sister, and as I drove down the highway, this plane took a total nosedive right over the road and I lost sight of it behind the woods.

GREAT. I am not equipped to handle a plane crash! I said to Lori, "Uh, gotta go. I'll call you back." I turned down the side road and started looking for a plane...smoke...smoldering corn...anything. I saw nothing. I called my parents (because they're 911???) and said, "Mom there was this plane and now it's gone!!!" She said, "Um, was it yellow? It's a crop duster."

Thank goodness I DIDN'T call 911.

I forgot about the crop dusters. I'm such a city girl now.

Bits for Sunday, July 27, 2008

Today I bring to you some thoughts on weddings. Not on marriage. I have a billion thoughts on marriage – many of which, I have been told by my married friends – will fly straight out the window once I am married. We’ll see, I suppose.

Anyway, yesterday I was a judge at a competition…and it was my second year to be in this role. One of the other judges recently got engaged, so we sat there in between performances, talking about rings and dresses and all the planning she’s trying to cram into a very short amount of time. I enjoyed it, because I love wedding talk. What is it that Mary Fiore says in The Wedding Planner? “Those who can’t wed…plan?”

I also scrapped some this weekend and ran across this picture:

It is my first captured-on-film wedding planning. I was three, and while everyone else was planning for Christmas, I was planning for a wedding. You’ll notice that the attire leaves a bit to be desired. I believe that is someone’s nightgown over my yellow footed pajamas, and I have no idea what I have on my head – a sweater, maybe? Pretty sure I stole the red flowers from my sister’s room. I have no idea what possessed me to be a bride that day. Maybe we had just gone to a wedding…maybe I heard someone talking about getting married…I’m not sure. I didn’t think my first crush rolled around until I was four. Maybe I was unaware that wedding planning worked best with a groom as part of the plan.

While Faith and I scrapped on Friday, we saw a commercial for WE’s program “Platinum Weddings.” Ever seen that? RIDICULOUS amounts of money go into these weddings. I watch the show, not on a regular basis, but whenever I need a good jaw-dropper. It is not unusual for the brides to have at least two wedding dresses (one for the ceremony, one for the reception), and to spend more on their shoes than I will someday spend on the whole ceremony, reception AND honeymoon. Flowers alone can cost anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 and are often imported from places I never even learned about in Geography class. The wedding planners spend the better part of a working day individually hanging crystals from tree branches and another day installing multi-colored lighting fixtures and covering the ceiling and walls in (more imported) silk.

My thought…why spend your entire life’s income on one day? I don’t mind splurging on a thing here or there…but I think I’ll draw the line at crystals on tree branches. I probably won’t even be able to see them in the pictures. Pictures, incidentally, would be one area where I’d be willing to spend. At least I could look at the pictures every day and get my money’s worth.

I also think…why spend a year’s salary on shoes? Ever heard of flip-flops? (I’m sure some of them have…but only if encrusted in diamonds.) I just might wear flip-flops when I get married. OR tennis shoes. (You must admit, the Runaway Bride was probably the most comfortable bride you’ve ever seen…all four times.) Those who wear slippers or go barefoot entirely…definitely subscribe to a cost-effective plan, not to mention comfy.

Really, I see no need for two dresses. I think I’ll be fortunate to find one I like. I’ve looked at dresses often during my years as a professional bridesmaid…and I’ve found that few are made for challenging body shapes. And I don’t want to be one of those women that makes the Sunday paper readers shower the wedding section with coffee when the page turns to the wedding announcements. (You know zactly what I’m talking about. You’ve raised an eyebrow at some bride along the way…a bride who tried to make a dress work that just didn’t.)

Another popular budget-buster from the show is the guest gift basket. Some people spend $100 or more on every guest’s gift basket. I’m confused. I thought guests brought gifts to the couple…not the other way around. When did guests stop being content with taking home a napkin and a program and maybe a flower petal stolen from the aisle runner? (The runner, incidentally, is another item you will not see at my wedding. I’ve tripped on too many of them, and I’m not spending my wedding day face down in the center aisle with my dress straight up in the air, giving the photographer some new material!)

You know the more I think about it, maybe I did have it right when I was three. Wear your footed pajamas, throw a sweater over your head (save the money you would have paid someone to do your hair), and carry some flowers from a vase in the bedroom. Just don’t forget to have your mom show up with the Polaroid camera to take some pictures.

Washers and Wal-Mart

I took today off work to participate in a long-ago-planned scrapping day. I've been very busy all week getting the chores done so I could participate in hobby-land, guilt-free. I had to clean the house...and plan the meals...and mow the yard...you know how it goes.

The very last chore was laundry. It's not that I h-a-t-e laundry. But I don't like it very well, either. Both my sisters have a fond affection for laundry much as I have a fond affection for scrapping. To me it's just one more chore to be done. And last night, having run out of workout clothes, the time had come.

I put load number one in the washer, went for my walk, came home, moved it to the dryer, and dumped load number two in the washer. And then...I was suddenly aware of the streaming of water on my floor. Not being equipped to handle home emergencies such as this, I did the only thing I knew to do: "DADDY!!!!!!" (Hey, it was either that or 911.)

Well let's just say that 2 hours and several trips from the washer to the sink later (emptying the washer one cup at a time), I packed up my soaked clothes and headed to a friend's to borrow her washer. I got home at 11:30. 11:30 and a whole bunch of wet clothes. And so began my drying party.

I finally went to bed at 2. As in...in the morning.

You'd think that wouldn't be so bad on a vacation day, but I had to be up at 6 to prepare for scrapping. That was great fun, but eventually the babysitter (not for me...for my scrapping buddy) fell through and we had to end our day early. It was sad.

So I went to Aldi's to shop...and realized when I pulled in the parking lot that my money was home safely on the table. (My car has has such an emergency workout this weekend running around to fix problems!)

After Aldi's, I ate dinner before braving Wal-Mart. JUST before I walked out the door, I went to the kitchen to put my ice cream bowl on the counter, TOTALLY crushed my thumb against the counter in a moment of horrible depth judgment, and broke my nail so far down I couldn't even cut it off. I'll be sporting a band-aid for weeks.

To end the evening, I had a brand new experience in Wal-Mart. I won't bore you with all the details, but let me say that this is the first time - at least that I can remember - a trip to Wal-Mart ever reduced me to tears. It wasn't an all out snot-fest. But there were definitely some escaped tears. (To which I say again...Come quickly, Meijer.)

Things That Make a Day Better

I hate not feeling well. And worse than that, I hate succumbing to a sick day. So far, I haven't given in to taking any portion of this day off work, but I feel ICKY. Very sick to my stomach. And I really just do not care for that feeling in the least.

BUT - I found this article on the Gaither website. STOP rolling your eyes...all of you who are weary of my GVB obsession. Anyway, they taped a reunion yesterday....and I am SO EXCITED. And a little mad that all of these people were breathing my good Indiana air and I didn't even know it.

So I'm pretty ready for THAT to release. Don't know if I can wait a whole year, but it appears I do not have a choice.

Heartaches and Healing

This morning when I should have been working on curling my hair or ironing my shirt, I sat on the edge of the bed rummaging through my Craig box. I do that twice a year...every January around his birthday and every July sometime during the week he died.

It may seem stupid, but I really don't care. It's what I do. It's how I remember my friend that I knew for entirely too short a time. I miss him terribly and twelve years of distance hasn't really softened the hurt all that much.

My Craig box holds a tiny collection of things that remind me of who he was...and who he was to me. Newspaper clippings about the accident, about his death...his obituary. A business card I snatched from the holder before someone came to clean out his desk. A rose from the wreath that hung on the front door of the office in the days following. A jawbreaker, still in its wrapper...from my desk drawer, where I'd stashed it after he threw it at me to get my attention one day. A photocopy of my first ever time card, which he had signed. Somehow just sifting through those things reminds me of the comfort of his friendship during a very lonely time in my life.

Last year his mother sent me copies of a couple of snapshots she had...and one sits in a little frame on my entertainment center. Mom asked me once who he was and when I told her, she issued me a pretty puzzled look. I know it probably doesn't make any sense why I need to have a framed picture displayed...but I do.

Craig's death marked one of the most pivotal moments in my faith. The moment when I had to decide if I was going to follow God even though He took away the very person I asked Him to heal, or if I was going to accept what would be a lifetime of puzzles...and trust His heart anyway.

To think of that day twelve years ago still makes me cry. I remember walking into the office and hearing the news of the accident. I remember walking around in a fog for days. I remember riding in the back of my parents' van down to my sister's pool the day of his funeral, huddled against the window so they couldn't see my faces, whispering how sorry I was that I just couldn't go to the funeral...I just couldn't say goodbye.

And yet if that had never happened, I never would have known how God could step in and so tenderly fix a broken heart and steady a wavering faith.

So today...and tomorrow...and all days...I think of him and miss him. But I also am thankful for healing and hope. Because I have found them even in the hurt.

Bits for Sunday, July 20

“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”
Jeremiah 33:3

This is one of those verses I’ve known “forever.” One of those that I learned probably as a five year old. I can spit it out with the best of them, but I never really stopped to think about what it could mean if I would dare to think beyond the obvious.

Maybe I’m the only one who ever stuck to the obvious…but then again, maybe I’m not. So I’m going to share with you what I learned this week.

I have lots of questions for God…and I’m sure that doesn’t shock any of you. And I long ago learned that God isn’t scared away or worn out by my questions, so I feel quite free to ask. But my interpretation of asking…of calling to God…is that I ask a specific question with a specific answer and in whatever time He deems appropriate, He answers in a specific way that I cannot miss. For example, I might say, "God, what color is a pumpkin?" And a week later, I might drive by a pumpkin patch and realize, "Oh! Pumpkins are orange! Thanks, God!" (Okay...truly my life has a BIT more depth than that, but you get the idea.)

The questions I ask are so specific. This week I learned the beauty of recognizing an answer that fell outside my perfect little specific formula.

Normally I don’t mind spilling all sorts of details to you. I figure life is lived in part to share…and I don’t mind sharing. But every now and then some things are just personal, and this is one of those times. So I’m not going to give you every little detail. Just enough that I hope you’ll understand what I learned.

I faced a decision that left me in one of those classic “angel on one shoulder, devil on the other shoulder” moments. I weighed the pros and cons. And I definitely prayed about it. I was specific in my prayers…asking God very pointedly to soften a heart to be receptive to my words. I knew that at some point in this decision process, I was going to have a conversation with a friend, and I knew God needed to do some work in that heart. So I asked for softening, because I expected...well, I wasn't sure what to expect. But none of my imagined options seemed "softened." And I had no idea how God was going to do it. It was somewhat of an impossible task, I figured. That’s why I asked Him to do it. It was beyond my ability.

The day of the conversation rolled around and I was thrown a bit off course because the banter didn’t go as I’d prefabricated it in my mind. (Imagine that.) But the responses I received in the course of the conversation were so filled with gentleness and compassion that they left me truly puzzled.

I pondered (okay…mentally rehashed multiple times) the whole conversation when it ended and I told God that I just didn’t get it…I hadn’t imagined any of it going the way it did and I had no idea what to think of the whole thing.

And that is when the verse came to my mind.

I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
I went into that prayer time days ago asking God to soften a heart to hear my words. He chose to answer in a different way…a better way. I asked for softening, and He gave me responses filled with gentle grace. That was a thousand times better than what I’d thought to ask for…and it was such a confirmation of God’s love to me. He knew that I needed those words in that tone on that day and would never expect them. And furthermore, the heart He softened was MINE. He softened it to hear His Words with unexpected answers.

Sometimes the unserachable things I do not know are not concrete answers to various mysteries I’m aware of…sometimes they’re things so unsearchable that I am truly unaware of them entirely.

And yet, when I’m willing to step back and recognize these moments as answers to my prayers…God delights to allow me to bask in their beauty and to feel His love through them.

So About Those Groceries

At the end of last month, I posted this about my grocery overhaul. I'd been challenged by a health-friend to incorporate more fruit and veggies into my diet. Diet is not a good word. Daily eating. There we go. Anyway, in order to accomplish this, I needed to increase my food budget and shop more than once a month...at least if I wanted to avoid going to the ER at the end of every month because of bad food.

So tomorrow night marks shopping trip #4 of this great experiment. I have noticed the following changes in life since implementing this plan:

1. I actually plan menus now. Instead of running through the store, throwing into my cart a combination of the things on my list I'd run out of and a few impulse buys, I now have a list of "must have" and "optional" items. When making my list, I think through the coming week's activities, including meals I know I won't be home and work carry-ins or company coming over.

2. I'm learning that theme weeks are good. Last night, I multi-tasked an episode of the Baby Borrowers with my menu planning. I decided to go with a Mexican-food themed week so I could shop for similar kinds of food. I think I should do more theme weeks.

3. Extra money should be spent on staples for the future. A couple of weeks ago I had an extra couple of bucks, so I picked up a brownie mix in case of emergency. I had an emergency at 9:30 last night and I was really glad I'd done that. (Craving constitutes emergency, right?)

4. I actually do eat more fruit and vegetables for snacks now that I know I have them on hand. (I know how much I paid for em and I'm not flushing that money down the tubes!)

5. I cook more now. I have always been a pretty decent cook...in fact, my Mom says to me at least once a week, "I wouldn't cook for just me." Well, can't help it. Love food, therefore must cook. Anyway, I had gotten in the bad habit of not doing good rounded meals, but now I am very aware of my cooking habits.

6. It really is a pain to shop once a week, but it's worth it enough in the long haul that I think I'll keep doing it.

I know many of you were just WAITING for an update. (eyeroll)

Childproofing

I think I've posted about this before, but my desperation for a solution is growing. So if you're a mom...and you have any ideas, TELL ME!!!


My cat (yes I know she's not a kid, but she acts like one) has taken up the habit of flushing the toilet. It's very annoying because I don't like paying for her frivolities. As of now, I just keep the bathroom door closed all the time to keep her out of it. But my bathroom decor (circa 1982) has gotten the best of me and I'm contemplating a mini-makeover in the near future. I don't want to go to all the trouble just to keep the door CLOSED.

I've searched on pet store sites AND kid/baby store sites and can't find any safety device for the flusher handle. I can find things to keep the lids down (so far that isn't an issue) but nothing for flushing. I wondered if the devices you can get for stove knobs might work - but I don't know if they're big enough or how they go about fitting on...so I don't know if that would work.

Anything, no matter how ugly, would work. Any ideas?? Any suggestions??? (No, Chris, shooting the cat is not one of the options.)

Bits for Sunday, July 13, 2008

I’m working on a Bible study. Not as in studying one…as in writing one. I love to write Bible studies…mostly because it gives me a good reason to get completely lost in the research without feeling guilty about what I’m not doing in the realm of housework. One chapter takes me probably an average of eight hours to write from start to finish. I usually do the research (hour or two) in one session and all the writing in another.

Yesterday was writing day. I hunkered down at the computer and completely missed the hunkering of the sun in the sky until I emerged from the office for food and discovered a dark house and a dark sky outside. Woops.

This study that I’m working on is sometimes easy and sometimes intimidating. I’m writing about some of the lesser known women of the Bible…and some are so lesser known that there’s very little to study about them. Yesterday’s woman has a grand total of one verse written about her. One verse. And from one verse, I was determined to pull an entire chapter. (They don’t call me Motor Mouth for nothin’.)

But I wrote something that struck me as profound. Not because I wrote it…but because it was one of those undiscovered (or perhaps underdiscovered…I’m sure someone before me noticed it) treasures of the Bible.

The woman is Damaris.

Who?

Damaris. Try Acts 17:34. You’ll find her.

Side note for just a minute…I was first introduced to Damaris’ presence in the Bible through a novel Janette Oke wrote about seventeen years ago. The book, A Woman Named Damaris was about a teenager who knew nothing of the Bible except that her name had come from it. In time, she was given a copy of the Bible and began to read through, looking for her name as she went. Long (and good!) story short, she was very disappointed to find that Damaris was one of those hidden women. She didn’t do anything spectacular, she didn’t have an amazing story, and she was only mentioned in one verse!

As I researched my one verse in preparation to write, I looked up the meaning of her name. Know what it means? “A heifer.” Good thing the character didn’t find out that tidbit! That would have crushed her last bit of hope! Poor Damaris…a heifer! But back in Bible times, horses and heifers were held in a higher esteem than we hold them today, so it might not be as bad as it sounds. (Trust me, if Damaris were driving down the bypass in front of me, going five under the limit, I might call her a heifer, but I can promise it wouldn’t be a compliment!)

Anyway, back to the point of my story. Damaris the character in Janette’s novel was informed that while Damaris of the Bible may not have done something particularly heroic or story-worthy, she did do the most important thing any woman (or man) could ever do: she believed.

The lone verse about her says, “A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris and a number of others.”

But I noticed this yesterday as I studied the entire chapter that ends with Damaris’ verse:

When Paul preached in Thessalonica, it says “Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women” (V. 4). When Paul preached in Berea, it says, “Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men” (V. 12). But when Paul preached in Athens, and verse 34 declared a similar generality, one particular woman emerged from the “number of women.” Damaris. Out of all the women who believed in those three cities, Damaris is the only one to be mentioned by name.

Why?
What about Damaris’ life made her so special that she would be mentioned by name and no other woman in three cities was given the same honor?

It’s a matter of perspective. Sure, much of her life remains a mystery. Sure, she received very little publicity in comparison to the Mary’s and Sarah’s of the Bible. But she was recognized. When no one else was mentioned, Damaris stood out from the rest.

And I loved uncovering that truth. I would imagine I’m not the only one out there to sometimes wonder why this life or that around me seems more important and successful than mine. But it doesn’t mean that I’m not seen by God. It doesn’t mean that I’m not standing out to Him in ways I perhaps can’t even begin to see from my vantage point.

It’s just one little part of the whole study. But it’s a part that meant a lot to me this weekend, so I wanted to pass it on to you.

Ahhh the Mowing

I had a couple of inquiries about my incident with the mower during the Habitat for Bekah extravaganza. Here's what happened.

Dad was using his heavy duty saws and clippers to trim back my lilac trees/bushes/whatever so I no longer have to do the limbo when mowing in that general vicinity. Mom was picking up said clippings as he worked. And I was mowing the back yard with my not so self-propelled mower. (And sweating, I might add. It was a hot, hot day.)

I reached the end of my mowing row and hoisted the mower around to head the other direction when I was very aware that my left foot was not following the rest of my body. I looked down to find my shoelace had become entangled in the bottom of the chain link fence. As I tried to shake it free, the mower (which annoyingly had just "that much" propel-ment left in it) moved forward to finish its job. So there I was, foot firmly attached to the fence on the left side, mower dragging the right side oh so slowly forward. And I, not being one to restart the mower without just cause, elected to fall over (while keeping the mower bar in place so it would continue to run). I finally got my shoelace free and continued mowing.

And the parents? They missed the whole thing.

Even before Habitat day, I'd told Dad I wanted to get a new mower. It must be self propelled and it must have a bagger. Other than that, I truly did not care anything about it.

So Dad found a refurbished mower that he said would be good for me. He brought it over to the house and taught me to use it. He also demonstrated for me how the self-propelling action on this mower works. Very well. He put it on high and Mom and I laughed at him running through the yard chasing the mower. So he left the mower for me to try at my leisure.

Last night I had a moment of leisure, so I pushed the mower into the yard and tried to start it without priming it. (That had worked when Dad was there...quite easily I might add.) Nothing. So I primed it. Several times. Nothing. Grrrrrrrrrreat. Then I realized....oh!! I forgot to hold in the little safety bar that must be in for it to start. DUH. Took right off.

I set the self-propelled part for the lowest setting and took a trial run. I did okay until the end of the row. As I tried to turn - it was like that thing was a mechanical bull. I was all over the yard, thankful that no one could see, and wondering why in the world I agreed to this mower.

At long last I realized the propelling action should be turned off for the turn itself...and then reactivated for the row.

I bet the birds got a GOOD laugh.

Jeff

This might prove to be too much multi-tasking for me. I'm blogging, baking chocolate chip cookies, and watching Beth Moore all at the same time. So hopefully all this will make sense and I won't start typing ingredients or portions of 2 Chronicles in my post.

I wanted to pass along this link for you to read and pray if you feel led to do so. The blog is about Jeff, who is a friend of mine through work. He was one of my students while he was in college. (He just graduated very recently.) The whole story of what happened to him is told in the first post in more detail than I will explain it here, but here's a basic idea. His home was robbed during the night this past weekend, and while he tried to protect his home and son, the intruders attacked him and he sustained a concussion. A few hours later, Jeff lost the last five years of his memory, and a few hours after that, lost pretty much all his memory.

This afternoon I talked to his sister-in-law (who works with me) and she said the doctors are hopeful that his memory will return, but they don't know when. And there is still the possibility that it won't return and he'll have to relearn everything as he is already in the process of doing.

On her most recent blog post, Angi (the sister-in-law) said it was okay to pass the link on to anyone who wanted to help join in prayer for him and his family, so I'm posting the link here and on the side. Jeff is a great guy and I know God is going to do something amazing through this situation. I don't know what it is, but I believe He's going to do it.

But He Made A Board Game!

After subjecting you all to my American Idol thoughts for the early part of the year, I've tried very hard to keep my Bachelorette comments to myself. I have declared (in water cooler talk) each week this season that this is the best Bachelorette ever. She did a great job.

And then she hit the finale. And my jaw hit the floor.

Last night I went to the fair with my Mom - only after setting two TV's to record the finale - one on one city's channel and one on the other city's channel in case bad weather hit and one of them cut out to cover it. And all the way through the fair, I'd think "She's on her final date now...she's picking the guy now..."

I rushed through my evening chores, fixed a chai (Skyepuppy, the creamer tip DID help - thank you!) and settled in on the love seat (appropriate don't you think?) to watch the 3 hour tour of love - not even caring that it would keep me up far too late on a work night.

While sipping the chai, I shook my head at how perfect Jason was (Jason fan all the way here!). And when he got to the end of the final date, and he pulled out the board game he made her to relive the journey of love....I screamed. I kicked my legs in the air. I put the chai down before I wore it. I scared the cats. I didn't care. He made her a BOARD GAME!!! How stinking creative of him!!!

And she picked Jesse. I was floored. And I just kept saying BUT HE MADE YOU A BOARD GAME!!!!!!

I didn't even watch the third hour. I was so upset that I just went to bed. And I declared to the ladies at work that I was done watching the Bachelorette. Brad's season ended my run of watching the Bachelor. And DeAnna just did it in for the Bachelorette. They tried to convince me that if Jason becomes the next bachelor, I'll change my mind.

Maybe.

But for today, all I can say is, BUT HE MADE A BOARD GAME!!!!!

Christmas Hair

The actual Sunday post is below, but by special request, I'm adding this one.

Chris, I do promise that there are worse hair photos than this one. I'm just not sure I'm emotionally prepared to post them in an open forum. LOL. (Or maybe I just couldn't find them in my big hurry this evening.) And I'm very sorry...no glasses. I was the lucky one in the vision department. But hopefully this will give you something to laugh at for a moment or two.

This is apparently from 1992 (which explains the hair that so lovingly matches a variety of styles I saw on some of you in a 1992 college yearbook this past week....)

I am NOT a morning person and Mom always insisted upon capturing a memory the moment I rolled out of bed. And by rolled, I do mean rolled. I didn't even leave the quilt behind. This must have been the initial Christmas morning photo because my eyes are still squinty and my stocking remains undisturbed.
I'll see what I can do about finding the year with the pink sponge roller curls. THAT was special.

Bits for Sunday, July 6, 2008

Well your chances of getting anything substantial and deep from me today are about as great as your chances of…winning a dream home giveaway on Mars. I’ve had a long weekend (including an interesting mishap involving my shoelace, a chain link fence, and a lawn mower) and I currently have a headache and am aware that my long weekend is rapidly dissolving into a precious memory. So…in lieu of deep, you get random. Everything you didn’t know you wanted to know about me. My top three faves in ten categories.

* My 3 favorite CD’s. I hesitate to admit I have CD favorites because I am probably one of four people left in the world without an MP3 player and a music downloading addiction. My favorite CD is usually my most recent purchase, but I would have to say right now, my top three are: David Phelps’ No More Night…Live in Birmingham, David Phelps’ Legacy of Love…Live, and the Gaither Homecoming Amazing Grace. I work out to all three of them. Yes, I know I am weird.

* My 3 favorite back burner movies. I love a good chick flick. And three of my favorites are ones that don’t get a lot of run-time on TV. But I love them anyway. That Thing You Do (Tom Hanks, Liv Tyler and others I don’t know), which has the catchiest song in it. I used to own this movie, but I lost it in a borrowing adventure somewhere along the way. The American President (Michael Douglas, Anette Bening) which is quite possibly the only politically oriented movie I’ve ever seen. Oh wait. Air Force One. But that’s not on my list. My third fave is Where the Heart Is (Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd) – the story of the Wal-Mart baby.

* My 3 favorite drinks. I don’t drink drink. But I do love a good coffee-house drink. I usually get a caramel frappe, because I want something iced. But on those days when I’m cold (that’s about once a year) and I want something hot to drink, I’m a big fan of a spiced chai. And no matter how hard I work to make them on my own at home, none compare to what I can buy. And as for low-budget coffee drinks – the BK iced mocha is my favorite one so far.

* My 3 favorite dishes to make. I love to cook, and I’ll try almost anything. But although it is the most time consuming (and expensive!) dish I make, I really enjoy making and eating broccoli salad. No one saw that coming! Yes, as is the vegetable broccoli. I also love to make macaroni and cheese – Paula Deen’s recipe is the best one on earth. And my newest favorite is a crock pot recipe I found called “Brownie Bottoms.” Sounds awful, but it will put you in a chocolate coma in about 2 seconds. FABULOUS. (And easy!)

* My 3 favorite fiction authors. Well I grew up on Lori Wick and Janette Oke. And I still love them. I know Christian fiction has taken a number of turns since their writing styles developed, but I still love going back to their simple pioneer romances. And another author that I love is Deborah Raney. My sister gave me a couple of her books for my birthday a few years ago, and I thought she did a fantastic job of putting a story on paper without sticking to any form of predictability. (I have so many more favorites than these three…but I had to make the cut!)

* My 3 favorite books of the Bible. This changes about as often as my CD favorites. Right now I’m studying Song of Solomon…yes that book of the Bible. And I love what I’m learning, so it’s a favorite. Lately I’ve also found myself often in Isaiah, so I’ll put that one on the favorite list. It’s a book that used to intimidate me…but not so much anymore. Ephesians is one of my long-time favorites too.

* My 3 favorite songs. Another revolving door of favoritism. My top favorite right now is the song I Then Shall Live – Gloria Gaither’s lyrics to the tune of Be Still My Soul. In fact, it’s my theme song for my 30’s. I don’t know if it’s right to say that something that isn’t in the Bible is inspired, but if it is, then this is inspired. Great song. I don’t know all the words to this song yet, but one of my newest favorites (from hearing it on the radio) is Point of Grace’s song Heal the Wound, Leave the Scar. I think it has a very powerful message. And you know, not to be stuck on a tune or anything, but another song that has been on my mind a lot lately is Be Still My Soul. Selah’s version of it is my favorite.

* My 3 favorite books to study. Because I don’t write fiction, I also don’t read nearly as much of it as I used to…so my favorite authors now are more in the non-fiction world. I love Elizabeth George’s book A Woman After God’s Own Heart. I love Dee Brestin and Kathy Troccoli’s book Falling in Love with Jesus. Those last two books are ones I loved so much I taught Bible studies on them. And my most recent fave is Bruce Marchiano’s book In the Footsteps of Jesus. He portrayed Jesus in the movie The Gospel of Matthew and wrote about his life changing experiences as he tried to see the world through Jesus’ eyes.

* My 3 favorite HGTV shows. I love watching House Hunters because I love to look at houses. I love trying to guess which house the buyers will pick, but I’m usually wrong. I also love Designed to Sell. Can’t decide if it’s more for Clive Pearse’s accent or if it’s the awe of what they can fix for $2000. And Design Remix is a great one because it’s got the same budget I’ve got – next to nothing!

* My 3 favorite stamp sets. This will probably only be meaningful to Faith, but I figure since I’m such a stamp person, it would be rude to leave the list without listing my top three faves. Sketch an Event – because you can use it for everything! And I do! Scribbles Alphabet – the set I’m using in my birthday book. It’s big and whimsical and you can color it in! And finally Just Journaling – because of COURSE I write a book in my books.

So there you have it – more than you ever wanted to know!!!

Helping the Habitat

** UPDATE on the Habitat. **

I'm POOPED. Apparently this whole manual labor thing was much more...laborious...than I anticipated or remembered from previous years. But I now have clean gutters (FYI, rotten helicopter seed thingies smell like a pig farm when clogged up in a gutter for who knows how long) and minimal weeds and clean siding and a cooler kitchen!

My favorite part of today was when Dad was trying to get the weed eater string spool pulled off the bottom of the weed eater to adjust it. He tugged and yanked and pulled and nothing worked. I (being a girl) said, "Why don't I go get the directions?" I found them (along with the directions to a number of things I no longer own....time to clean out!) and returned to where he continued to fuss with the weed eater. I read the directions aloud and he seemed unimpressed. Finally I said, "Why don't you let me work on this and you can go do something more important?" He said, "Well, more power to ya," and walked away. He'd taken about two steps when the part popped right off in my hand. He turned around and said, "How'd you do that?" I said, "Um....I followed the directions?" Fortunately my Dad is extremely good-natured.

Oh...and as for the hair and makeup...those were gone in the first ten minutes when I was hit with flying rotten helicopter wads.


Happy Fourth!

I can't believe I have a day off work and I'm awake and somewhat on the road to being ready to go at 9 in the morning. There is something DREADFULLY wrong with that.

But my parents will be here soon to help with the annual "Habitat for Bekah" project. There are those little chores (mostly outside ones) that I can't do all by myself or I don't have the tools to do. So every year they come over one time and help me whittle down the list of out of control stuff. And today is our day.

So right after I straighten the hair and put on the makeup (you never know...someone could stop by and a girl has to look presentable!) I will head out to the world of weeds and window washing and shopping for a new mower.

I better have some coffee first.

Poor lil Pig

Last year after the church carnival, Pastor Brian gave me a leftover key chain from the prize table. The key chain is a pig that you can squeeze...and his eyes bug out. There's also some nasty #2 that bugs out the back. (Don't you wish you had this key chain?)

Anyway, I took it to work to keep as a conversation piece. You never know when you will need a good conversation piece. The pig has become pretty popular...kind of an alternative to a stress ball.

I learned what a year of that will do to a poor piggy key chain.

Before:


After:
I won't show you what the backside of the after pig looks like. Trust me - you do not want to know.

But these two pictures can represent so many things. Start of work day....End of work day. Driving into the Wal Mart parking lot....After checking out at the Wal Mart. You get the idea.